Dragon's Den
by BunBunBabe
Summary: Part IV of WTRS Neal has a lot to juggle on his plate with a family reunion,a budding romance,an undercover job in a seedy Chinatown club that will be both dangerous and exciting. Warning adult spanking,slash, fluff,and forced drug use. Humor abound.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own and I do not make any money from this story**

**Here is part IV of the Worth the Risk series I hope you enjoy and yes I know I promise slash in the other stories and there will be some in this story, this story is rated T and M for spanking, drugs use, swearing .**

**Chapter 1: Twisted Emotion**

Neal looked at Mozzie from where he was lying on the ground "Mozzie… it's so good to see you again," Neal slurred a bit as he moved his hand up and rubbed his head. Dante smirked as he sat up and looked at the older man "Well, if isn't Mozzie; it sure has been a while… if Burke's sent you here it's because he wants Neal back at his desk doing menial work putting big scary men behind bars. Neal's taking a personal day so when you speak to Burke again tell him that" Dante remarked as he put his wine glass down on the coffee table. Mozzie looked at the other two men, after a moment of silence he spoke. "Well, if that's so then I'll go Neal just pick up the phone next time and tell him you're fine so I don't have to be bothered," Mozzie said as he gave a small wave and walked out of the apartment.

Dante laughed as he looked over the coffee table at Neal, "I heard back from my mother, everyone is looking forward to the family reunion," Dante said as he held a hand out to his cousin and pulled him to his feet. Neal groaned "I almost forgot about that, I'm supposed to be hosting it too," Neal said as he made his way over to the couch. When he finally sat down he looked at Dante "I'm not a good planner so I'll just hire someone to do it, Neal said as he put his head back. Dante laughed "Burke's wife is an event planner and she would jump at the chance to plan this for you," Dante said as he stumbled to the fridge and found a beer.

"You're right Elizabeth is an event planner and I think I will hire her for the job, I doubt she would charge me much at all," Neal remarked as he put his head down to sober up. "Dante, why does Peter hate me so much?" Neal asked as he turned and looked at his cousin. Dante sighed and walked back over to his cousin and sat beside him. "You're a con artist who breaks the law and he is a federal agent that is one reason and he is also playing the married man card" Dante said patting Neal on the knee. "You are a very good looking man and if you give him some time and keep flirting he'll wear down eventually to your charms."Dante says in a reassuring tone.

With a small smile Neal chuckled "Yeah…your right he'll bend to my charms some day," Neal said as he yawned. Dante moved his hand and patted Neal's head a few times. "Go to bed, I have a feeling if you keep up your plan of ignoring Burke he'll show up here eventually to check on you," Dante remarked as he sat back and downed more beer. Neal got to his feet with very little trouble, when he got to his bed he dropped onto it face first the downy soft comforter, giving a soft moan at the comfortable feeling on his face.

Watching his cousin for a few minutes as he fell into a deep sleep, Dante finished his beer and put the bottle down and with a smile that could rival the devil's own; Dante walked out onto the terrace and looked at the city view. _Driving a wedge between them is easier than I thought, _Dante mused to himself as he watched a few cars zip down the street quickly to catch a red light at the far end of the road. "I did promise Aunt Nat I would watch over him or suffer her wrath," Dante mumbled to himself as he smiled at the idea of his Aunt taking him on.

Looking down at the street Dante pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed a long distance number, as he listened to the other end ring he glanced back to make sure that no one was watching him. "Caffarelli residence…" a young girl's voice said on the other end. Dante smiled "Is this is Nela… you're getting to be a big girl to answer the phone, is your daddy home?" Dante asked "Yeah… Daddy, Daddy! It's Uncle Dante," Nela yelled as she waited patiently.

After a couple seconds of waiting Dante heard a male's voice on the other line "Dante, it's good to hear your voice, I was just going to call you. Mom wanted me to tell you that we're just waiting for a date for the reunion and then we'll fly over. Other than that how are things?" the younger brother asked. Dante gave a small sigh "I'm good, I guess you heard about everything that Neal and I went through, it's been tough but we're getting through it slowly," Dante said looking back over his shoulder.

"Neal is getting over it easier than I am; I'm doing my best to keep his mind off it as best I can," Dante added as he walked around the terrace. "Well I shouldn't keep you, this phone bill will be astronomical already I'll see you soon Romano, give my love to Lise and Luka," Dante said before hanging up. As he headed back inside Dante started to clean up the glasses and wine bottles. Once the apartment was clean he started to snoop around looking for anything to pass the time while Neal slept. As he snooped around he found various amounts of cash hidden around the apartment, hidden items and papers but nothing of real interest. After giving up the search he grabbed a book off the shelf and began to read.

* * *

Peter walked around his office and sighed as he heard Neal's phone go right to voice-mail telling him that Neal had turned his phone off. Giving an annoyed groan Peter hung up his phone and called Mozzie's phone and when Mozzie picked up he ignored saying any type of hellos "Did you talk to Neal?" Peter asked "Yes… well no actually he was slurring his words, Dante did most of the talking…this is going to sound paranoid," Mozzie paused in his reply.

"That hasn't stopped you before," Peter cut in with a chuckle. "Very funny Suit, but I've known Neal a long time and maybe it's because of the shared encounter but his cousin seems to be making decisions for him." Mozzie said over the phone. Peter paused for a moment before speaking, "I don't think he…Dante likes me very much. He started the conversation and goaded me into saying the right thing to upset Neal," Peter said sighing. "I'll give him a day to sober up and I'll talk to him in the morning. That is if I can get him away from Dante's poisonous words. I'll call you back once after I try talking to him," he added before hanging up the phone.

After pacing the office a couple more times Peter thought back to the altercation earlier remembering right away how he had walked right into Dante's trap to make Neal trust him even less, Neal had heard the part of the conversation that Dante wanted him to hear. As he sat back down behind his desk Peter grabbed the top folder and opened it to look the information over. _ Maybe if I bring this over I can tell him we have to talk about a case and then I can work in a talk with him that is if I can get in through the front door of his apartment,_ Peter thought as he flipped through the pages of information.

Diana walked into Peter's office "Hey boss, we have some more surveillance from the building, three more deliveries went in. Also Hughes wants to know when you plan on sending Neal in undercover," she asked noticing the folder in Peter's hand. "I plan on talking to him about it tomorrow that is if I can get him to talk to me that is, I'm sure he's still pretty upset with me from earlier," Peter said putting the folder down on his desk. "Do you have any advice on how I could get through to him?" Peter asked hoping someone could help him.

"Neal is fragile he plays everything off as not affecting him but it does and he keeps everything bottled up inside. When he heard you say that you didn't care I have a feeling that his mind shut down right when he heard those words. Which means before you can talk about cases with him you have to mend the bridge between you two, it's the only way," Diana said as she closed the office door and took a seat across from Peter.

Peter was ready to jot down mental notes on how to get Neal to listen to him. "You sound like you know what you're talking about. I don't know what to say to him, I'm worried that I'll say the wrong thing again and upset him more," Peter remarked as he ran his fingers through his hair. Diana smirked as she sat back in the chair "Why don't you start off with that, sit Neal down and tell him you don't know what to say and if he starts to cut you off then just stop him and say you never meant to say what you did, even though you said it loud enough for the whole office to hear," Diana said as Peter rolled his eyes.

Both agents sat there for a moment while Peter thought of how to approach Neal and speak to him. "So you're saying that I should tell him the truth and hope that he believes me and then I can tell him about the new case?" Peter asked hoping he understood the inner workings of emotions.

With a small nod Diana stood up "I think you'll do well in apologizing to Neal, I know where Neal is coming from being so confused about everything in his life. It took a lot of guts for him to tell you how he felt…before you even ask during the week he asked me about some things, and also there are the looks he used to give you, the doodles on the reports or in his notebook. I put the clues together it's pretty obvious how he feels about you. Well I need to get back to those reports," Diana said as she left quickly.

Once he was alone again Peter grabbed the case file and looked at it for a moment before picking up his phone and dialed June's number and waited for her to pick up "June… it's Peter could you do me a favor, I'm coming over to see Neal and I was wondering if you could check on him and see if his cousin is with him…if he is could you get rid of him for a while?" Peter asked as he packed a few things away in his desk as he got ready to leave.

"Of course Peter, he'll be gone before you get here…" June said a smile evident in her voice. Peter looked at the clock on his desk "I should be there in twenty minutes thirty at the latest, could you not tell Neal I'm coming either I want to catch him off guard. I'm leaving now, thanks again June," Peter said before hanging up. Taking a quick glance around his office he stood up and left his office. "I'm taking an early lunch, I might be late getting back" Peter said as he walked by Jones' desk.

* * *

June walked upstairs and knocked on the door and waited for someone to open the door. When Dante opened the door June smiled "Hello Dante, I was wondering if you would do me a favor the young man who runs errands for me is sick and I need a few things from some stores down town would you be a dear and get me a few things?" she asked smiling at the young man.

Dante looked over at Neal still passed out on the bed "Well Neal is sleeping and I really should keep a watch on him," Dante lied as he tried to keep himself from being separated from Neal. "It would mean so much if you could do this for me I'll pay you if you like," June said handing Dante three hundred dollars. With a smile Dante looked at Neal again "He'll be fine for a while I'll just need a shopping list and some addresses I'm still learning how to get around the city," he said pocketing the money. June handed him the two lists and smiled "I'll keep an eye on Neal, for you," she said walking past Dante and over to Neal. Busying herself she tucked Neal in and pushed his hair away from his face. "He just looks so adorable when he's asleep," she commented as Dante left the apartment.

_Three hundred bucks to run some old woman's errands… I can't believe I've sunk this low,_ Dante thought as he walked to the street corner to hail a cab; walking down the street he stuck his hands in his pocket. Once he flagged down a cab he got into the back and gave the driver the first address. He didn't notice the blue Taurus that passed his cab as they pulled away from the street corner.

* * *

Peter parked his car and went inside and made his way upstairs to Neal' apartment where he found June waiting for him at the table. He looked around and saw the conman waking up. June smiled "I'll leave you two to talk," she said as she left the small apartment closing the door behind her.

Neal rubbed his eyes and walked out of the small alcove where his bed was to find Peter sitting at the table. "Peter I don't want to talk to you right now," Neal said as he slowly approached the other man at the table. "That's fine you don't have to speak I will," Peter remarked as he motioned for Neal to sit down. The younger man sat down and crossed his arms over his chest before crossing his legs and leaning back in his seat. Peter watched Neal before speaking to him.

"Look Neal, what you heard this morning when Dante was talking to me and what you heard was…" Neal stood up in a quick fluid motion and slammed his hands on the table "Was what! The truth that you have always hated working with me this whole time, I heard the words come right out of your mouth; I wish you never kept chasing me why couldn't you give up like the others… you had to be the perfect agent and catch me and systematically ruin my life. I trust…trusted you; I even put my feelings on the line by telling you how I felt. Dante was right you're a jerk and when I'm done with the FBI I want nothing more to do with you!" Neal yelled his voice starting to break up at the end.

Letting Neal take a moment Peter sat in silence before speaking "If that's what you really want then I won't force you to stay with the FBI, you'll be a free man and you can go anywhere you want," Peter said calmly hoping to make Neal feel better. "I don't want to leave the FBI you uncaring jackass, I just want you to love me! Not just as a friend but more or can't you get that through your head," Neal said angrily as he looked at Peter.

Peter sat at a loss for words, as he got to his feet when there was a knock on the door. Neal tried to calm his breathing down as he opened the door, and when he saw June he instantly felt his anger shrink away to nothing. "What is going on in here, I heard all this yelling up here are you two alright?"June asked noticing that Neal was still trying to control his breathing. "We're fine, just a small argument nothing worse than that," Neal said as he walked over to the sink and got himself a glass of water.

June looked over at Peter and saw him wave her off "Well I've sent Dante to pick up some things and when he gets back I'll make all of us some tea," June offered as she looked at Neal. With a forced smile Neal put his glass down "Tea would be nice, thank you June," Neal remarked as he glanced over at Peter with a venom in his eyes that made the other man suppress a shiver. In all the years he had been chasing Neal he had never seen him look at him in such a way. The look hadn't slipped past June. She knew that it wasn't her business to get in the middle of the fight. "We'll I'll leave you two to settle your differences," June said giving both men a smile as she left the apartment.

Peter walked around the dining room table and looked at Neal "I'm sorry for what you heard this morning; I never should have let Dante talk me into such an obvious trap, he saw you and he said what he did to anger me," Peter apologized hoping to get through to Neal, as Neal stood there he saw the door open again.

"I was going to let you take care of this by yourselves and I hate to intrude but I saw that look you gave Peter and it shook me to the core and now you two are going to sit down on that couch and you are going to tell me just what's going on," June said taking on a more stern tone. Neal skittered around the older woman and parked himself on the far end of the couch. Peter walked over and sat down on the couch beside Neal before looking at June. "You're each going to have a turn, Peter you may go first, and Neal don't interrupt" June said looking at the FBI agent.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own I do not make money I just survive on reviews, Warning slash, abuse, language, please read and review if I get 5 reviews I will post chapter 3 before the new White Collar ep on Tuesday. I would like to thank Peppe for betaing my story and keeping me interested in writing.

**Chapter 2: Waking the Dragon**

Peter looked over at Neal before looking at June "I was speaking with Dante this morning and he told me that you told him that I only see you as another Satchmo; he said that he told you that I only see you as a stray. He just kept egging me on until I snapped and I said that I can't stand you sometimes, which is the truth but that only happens when you decide to do stupid things," Peter said reaching over and trying to patting Neal's knee.

Neal slid his knee away and looked away from Peter's hand "That's all well and good but that's not going to fix anything between us… this time," Neal said feeling a shiver go up his spine. June clapped her hands together a bit as she looked over at the younger man "Neal… now it's your turn to let out anything you want to talk about," June said with a smile.

"First of all just because you said Dante egged you on doesn't mean a thing; you still said those horrible things and you keep turning me down when I tell you how I feel. You have no idea what it was like with Colin in Italy. I was gone for a month and his abuse was so intense but I always had hope that you were working yourself to death to find me. When you finally saved me from that hell hole it rekindled the old crush I used to have on you when you were chasing me," Neal said as fresh tears started to spill down his cheeks from the memories of the abuse he suffered.

June looked at Peter for a moment before motioning to him to comfort Neal, Peter uneasily moved over to Neal but before he could even react, Neal had hugged Peter tightly around his neck and held on for dear life as he cried. Taking her leave June slipped out of the apartment to give Peter and Neal some time alone. Peter rubbed small circles on Neal's back 'til he slowly began to let go.

With a smirk Neal sat up so he could look into Peter's eyes "I'll make you a deal, I'll even let you discuss it first with Elizabeth. In exchange for being with me I'll tell you about ever con and theft I ever did in my entire life and where you can find everything but not all at once I'll give to you a bit at a time, and also my personal life… no secrets at all," Neal offered. "Also we'll keep it discrete between you, me and Elizabeth," he added already sure that Peter couldn't pass up such an opportunity to learn so much.

* * *

Dante grumbled as he got out of the last cab he had taken from the three stores he had gone to and as he walked down the sidewalk to June's front door as he noticed a familiar car parked out front. "Burke… I had a feeling he would show up just not this soon," Dante said to himself as he went inside and dropped the bags off in the kitchen. When he was sure he wasn't needed he took the stairs to the second floor two at a time. When he got to Neal's door he slowly opened it to listen for anything and when he didn't hear any strange sounds he opened the door.

"Neal I'm back… oh Burke… I didn't know you were here," Dante remarked with a faked tone of surprise as he saw Peter sitting beside Neal on the couch. Peter looked up with a winning smirk. "We were just about to start talking about a new case; you're welcome to join us in the planning" Peter offered as he got up from the couch and retrieved the case file from the dining room table.

Neal looked at his cousin as Dante walked around the coffee table and sat in the empty chair. Peter spread out some of the surveillance photos out on the table. Dante watched his cousin like a hawk. "I have to know… is this some under cover mission?" he asked as his eyes locked on Peter's for a moment before adding. "Let me guess you want to use Neal again… because he's the only one who can do it." Dante said hitting the nail on the head.

Peter looked at the ex con with a worried look "It's true, the guy we're after has put an ad out for a singer at his club and we took the initiative to set up an interview in two weeks; it's crucial that you nail the interview," Peter said as he looked at Neal who he could tell was worried about going undercover again. "

The man your will be after is Jordan Wilson he's twenty –seven and he's making a name for himself in the smuggling business. He has already sent six large one-of-a kind sculptures all over the world, and it's believed that he secretly buying the originals and selling the fakes for six times the original price for some reason and we need someone on the inside," Peter added.

Looking over at his cousin for a moment Neal glanced at Peter "I don't know if I can do this Peter… the last time I went undercover I ended up being sold as a pet," Neal stated as he felt his hand shake a bit. Peter reached over and took Neal's hand in his "I wouldn't be asking this if we didn't need you, and we've set up extra precautions this time around. The club is a good size one in Chinatown and there are some apartments across the street where we've got surveillance set up right across the street on the club and the apartments above. This guy owns the whole building and he's up to something in those apartments… everyone that works for him lives above the club," Peter said as he pointed the pictures out on the table.

Neal tried to keep his worries inside although he knew they were plastered on his face. "Can I make a small request?" he asked as his voice dropped a couple octaves before he tore his gaze away from the pictures and turning his eyes back to Peter. "I want undercover agents in the club, ones that I know and that I trust or no deal," Neal said as he put his foot down on the issue of his safety. Peter chuckled softly "I'll send in the whole department if it makes you feel any better, and just so you know I requested a back-up in the club and we could only get cleared on ones in the audience, it would be too suspicious to have another person go for a job at the same time as you," Peter remarked.

Dante cleared his throat "Are you insane Burke; what makes you think I'll let you send him into another situation that could get him in any trouble," he said as he grabbed the surveillance photo of the man in question. "What a little punk," Dante remarked as he threw the photo back on the table. "And why does it have to be Neal? There must be other agents who can sing in your department, does it have to be a male singer?" Dante asked keeping his gaze on Peter.

"The ad asked for a male singer and Neal is the only one in the department that can sing well enough to get the job, but I promise I will watch Neal like a hawk, El gave me a hard time concerning Neal's last world trip and she swore I would sleep on the couch if something ever happened to Neal again. Hughes wants us to cut your tracker and give you something to wear… although you know how that turned out last time, so they were thinking of giving you an implanted chip under your skin this time," Peter said with a smirk. Neal frowned

"Pet con low jack you mean…no thank you I'll go with the cheap watch or necklace thank you very much; I do have some standards," Neal said as he put his foot up on the table showing the government issued tracking anklet.

* * *

Neal yawned as he stood up and bent back to stretch his spine out, they had been sitting there for an hour talking about the case, he looked over at Dante who had fallen asleep after running around for June. After looking at his cousin Neal glances over at Peter, he smiled at the drowsy agent who had zoned out while staring at the paperwork. It was then that Neal got a mischievous look on his face and leaned over to wake the agent up with the excuse of wanting to talk about the case when he really just wanted to mess with Peter.

Instead of waking Peter by more normal means Neal whispered into Peter's ear. "Peter… Peter… it's time to wake up…" but when he couldn't get the agent to wake up he gave a small chuckle before licking the shell of Peter's ear causing the man to yell out in surprise loud enough to wake Dante. Neal laughed softly as he jumped back out of Peter's reach when he made a grab for the younger man. "Is there a reason you went to such lengths to wake me?" growled Peter as he wiped his ear a few times.

"You were both asleep and I was getting bored so I decided to wake you up," Neal said in his most logical tone and juvenile tone. "And just giving me a light shake on the shoulder never crossed your mind?" Peter asked as he got to his feet and started to collect the papers on the table. Dante chuckled "Well he couldn't exactly do that to me, it would be too weird so he had to do it to you Burke," Dante remarked as he put his head back down on the chair to get some more sleep.

Peter looked at Neal "Don't speak of this to anyone ever," Peter said as he put the rest of the papers away in his folder. Neal smirked at the agent and joked "I wouldn't dare: you might be tempted to spank me if I did. Now let's get back to work; you know I get bored easy, if I don't have something to occupy my time," Neal said wrapping his arms around Peter's arm. Rolling his eyes a bit Peter let Neal hang off him but only until they reached the car. When they got back to work Peter kept his distance in the elevator and as they walked into the bullpen where Neal looked at Diana and smiled at her.

* * *

Neal grabbed his phone from his pocket and called Elizabeth and waited for her to pick up so when she did he smiled "Elizabeth, he I was wondering if you could plan an event for me this weekend, for twenty three people and I would love for you and Peter like to come join me there. It's my family reunion because you two, along with Mozzie and June your all my family now," Neal said in his most charming tone.

Elizabeth smiled and pulled her planner out of her bag "I have a free weekend, now could you come over tonight to talk about this so I can get everything set up before the weekend. Now is there any place in particular you would like to have this party?" she asked as she started to write down a few notes on her computer knowing Neal's style "Well everyone is staying at The Plaza so something in that area would be nice since there will children with Dante's family," Elizabeth scribbled down the information as Neal talked.

"Neal the Plaza is out of your radius so you'll have to clear the travel with Peter as you know, and can we talk more at dinner I need to start dinner and pick a few things up before you two come home. I'll talk to you tonight Neal," Elizabeth said before hanging up the phone to go start dinner. Neal put his phone away and started to look at the folders that had piled up on his desk.

Diana followed her boss into his office "You must have really apologized through the nose to get him to come back with you. So what went on?" She asked with a smile as she took the seat across from Peter. "Neal gave me the perfect ultimatum in his favor; he'll let me choose how I want any relationship between us to happen…if I agree he'll tell me everything about him, every little thing he's stolen and forged and everything in general. The offer seems legit, but I'm confused on what to do…I'm married and it doesn't seem click in his mind," he said chewing on his lip.

With a small smile Diana raised her eye brows up a bit. "You chased Neal for three years and you only caught him on bond forgery… think about it you could learn about every little detail of his life while giving him what he wants," Diana said as she turned and looked down at the bull pen where Neal had taken to goofing off with a paper flower.

* * *

By six the division was nearly empty leaving Peter and Neal alone; Neal snuck up the stairs when he saw Peter had his head looking down at the folder open on his desk. He slipped through the conference room and through the back door in Peter's office as he got closer he put his hands on Peter's shoulders startling the agent.

"You're too tense, you can't sit hunched over like this for hours," Neal remarked as he pressed down on a couple tense muscles instantly loosening them. "See now you feel a lot better and I'm not going past any limits since you haven't set any for me yet. I'm not trying to seduce you, but if you do fall for me then I'm all right with that," Neal remarked as he rubbed Peter's shoulders to get rid of knots under his hands.

Peter groaned at the feeling of all his tension disappearing, Neal smirked as he kept rubbing Peter's shoulders. "You know we should head home soon or we'll be late for dinner, unless you want to be late," Neal teased as he moved his hands a little lower. Peter looked up at the clock it was nearly six and traffic was going to be hell and Neal fidgeting in the car would be no picnic, so he ignored the good feeling as an idea popped into his head on how to control Neal.

He stood up quickly and faced Neal, "I'll give you an ultimatum, if you stay quiet from now until we walk into my house I will give you one kiss but if you make a single sound you have to tell me the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to you," Peter said. "You have to stand as still as a statue and if you move that counts as a sound," he added with a chuckle. Neal stood there as if he were made of marble; he held the air in his lungs for fear that Peter would take breathing as movement.

The FBI agent moved swiftly and so gracefully that Neal thought he imagined the brief kiss feather light kiss on his lips; he bit his tongue hard to keep from speaking. Peter cleared his throat as he grabbed his coat "We should go now," he said as turned the small table lamp off. Neal nodded and rushed out of the office to grabs his things.

_This not making a sound is harder than it sounds, I don't think I could make it the whole way,_ Neal thought as he grabbed his copy of the Wilson case and his hat. When they had got to Peter's car Neal had nearly gnawed his lip off tying to keep quite. Peter smirked at the attempt Neal was making to keep silent.

"It's only been three minutes Neal we still have a twenty minute car ride not counting any traffic, I don't know if you can make it," he commented. Neal looked at Peter with a determined look in his eyes, after a second he turned away from Peter as he looked out the window his phone beeped with a text message. Neal opened his phone and saw the text was from Dante asking about what they were going to do for dinner.

Neal shot back a quick reply saying he was having dinner at the Burke's and that he would be home late and to eat without him. When they arrived at the Burke's Neal bounded out of the car and ran inside and let out the biggest sigh he could muster. Peter walked into the living room with a smirk on his face "I'm proud of you Neal you managed to stay quite the whole time," Peter remarked in a surprised tone.

Elizabeth walked out of the kitchen with a smile on her face "I was wondering when you two were going to get here, dinner is just about to come out of the oven, Neal took a seat at the table and watched as Peter walked into the kitchen with Elizabeth.

"Honey before we go back in there I have to tell you that I kissed Neal and if you want to get mad at me and make sleep on the couch while you get the divorce papers I'm fine with that," Peter said being completely honest with his wife. Elizabeth smiled and bit her lip "It's about time, I was wondering when it was going to happen," She said as she pulled dinner out of the oven and brought it into the dining room leaving Peter looking like a gaping fish in the kitchen. Peter walked out of the kitchen and looked at Elizabeth "This is a test isn't it…you mean your fine with this…how can you be fine with this?" Peter asked astonished that his wife would be taking the news so well.

With a smile Elizabeth began to cut the roast "Well that's an easy question, Neal is insanely handsome and he's not a cheap tramp. I know he's not out for money or anything of the sort. So of course I approve besides every marriage needs a little spice up once in awhile and also you could use it… it would help you keep Neal from getting in trouble," Elizabeth said as she served dinner.

As dinner ended Neal helped Elizabeth put the leftovers away and while they were doing they talked about the plans for the reunion. "I assume that you want some classy stuff but not too expensive, also since there will be children there we have to take that into account and have some stuff for them to eat and do," Elizabeth said as she took notes. Neal smiled "They will eat just about anything except seafood and caviar," he remarked with chuckle.

After the dishes were washed Neal made his way into the living room where Peter was flipping between two games on the television. Neal shifted from one foot to the other as he tried not to bother Peter.

"Neal you know where the bathroom is," Peter said with a smirk as Neal stopped moving and smiled "No, I wanted to know if I could watch TV with you, I promise not to talk during the games," Neal said keeping his voice down as the commercial ended.

Peter barely looked away from the television as he patted the couch beside him. Neal smiled and made himself comfortable on the couch; he knew he would have to head home get some sleep before work. "Peter, about the new case…I trust in you, and I know you'll protect me," Neal said as he put his head down on the pillow in Peter's lap. Elizabeth looked up with from her computer and smiled at the scene of Peter's playing Neal's hair as they watched the game.

"Neal any allergies I should know about?" she asked, Neal looked up and thought for a moment. "None that I can think of, as long as we tell everyone what's in the food we should be fine," Neal said letting his eyes close.

* * *

Dante grumbled as he walked down the final sidewalk to the Burke's house and when he arrived at their door he began to bang on it. "Neal… Neal, get out here!" he yelled as he kept banging nearly splintering the wood door frame. Neal quickly got up from the couch and went to the front door to find out why Dante was banging on the door. As he pulled the door open Neal looked at his cousin.

"You're drunk…I'm taking you back to my place," Neal said with a sigh as he helped his cousin inside. "It looks like I have to cut the night short," Neal added as he walked over to Elizabeth and kissed her on the cheek. "Have a good night and I'll call you tomorrow, and Peter I'll be ready in the morning why don't you pick me up early so we can have coffee," Neal said as he gave Peter a quick kiss good night not noticing that Dante was watching him like a hawk.

Neal grabbed Dante by the arm as he dragged him out of Peter's house. "You had to show up drunk…I was watching sports with Peter and he was playing with my hair it was perfect and you had to ruin it," Neal grumbled as he waved down a empty cab, and after giving the driver June's address both of them sat in silence until the cab arrived at June's. Neal pulled out Dante's wallet from his pocket and paid the driver and before dragging Dante out of the back seat and up to his apartment. Once the door closed Dante walked over to his cousin and shoved him against the door "So I guess you finally got what you wanted; now you're Burke's whore on the side... is this what you wanted from him?" Dante asked cruelly as he slammed Neal against the door causing his head to bounce a bit.

Neal felt himself start to black out when a sharp pain ripped through his neck waking him back up to find Dante biting his neck. "Get off your drunk…you're hurting me;" Neal said as he tried to struggle away from the other man who had begun to suck on his neck. Trying keep from having flashbacks of his first time with Colin he started to claw at Dante's neck and when he couldn't get him off he settled on the last resort and closed his eyes as he kneed the other man in the groin and forced him away.

Not bothering to look back Neal made his way into the bathroom and locked the door behind him before looking at his bloody black and blue neck. "What the hell is wrong with you Dante…?" he mumbled lightly touching the bleeding bite mark. Knowing that his cousin was still out there Neal sat on the cold tiled floor his back resting against the tub, reaching up to the rack he pulled down the towels and balled them up to use as pillows. Neal kept one towel and used it as a blanket as he tried to get comfortable.

* * *

"Neal, are you all right in there? Neal… can you open the door?" June asked knocking on the door as hard as she could as she tried to get the younger man's attention. Neal groaned in pain as he got up from the uncomfortable position he had slept in the night before. When he finally opened the door he peeked out through the crack "Is Dante still out there?" Neal asked as he opened the door slowly.

June gasped "What happened to your neck Neal?" she asked moving closer and forcibly turning Neal's head to get a better look. "I would like to know that as well" Peter said as he walked in the open door. Neal looked over June's shoulder as best he could craning his neck to show off the wound more. "Dante… he bit me last night so I hid in the bathroom and I fell asleep in there," Neal said as he was lightly prodded in the neck.

"I'll go get the first aid kit… Neal why don't you sit down," June said with a smile as she pushed Neal into a chair. Peter stood before Neal and looked at the clearly infected wound and with a worried look he saw the clear teeth marks left in Neal's skin. _ What the hell could have made him attack his own cousin, _Peter thought as he looked the wound over "Neal…did he say anything to you before he attacked you?" Peter asked.

Neal closed his eyes for a moment and turned his head away showing the bruise even more. "He said I finally got what I wanted… that I was your whore on the side…then he asked if this was what I wanted and then he gave me this," Neal said softly as June walked back in and began to clean and patch the wound. "You can be sure I won't be letting that hooligan back in my house; I know you keep some strange company Neal but for your own cousin to do it is just wrong," June remarked as she finished up. Just as June closed the first aid kit she turned at the approaching footsteps to see Dante standing there "What a hangover…" he mumbled as he looked up and saw Peter and June looking at him. "Um good morning… is there a reason you're both looking at me?" he asked feeling uneasy at the stares he was getting.

"You really expect us to believe that you don't remember attacking your own cousin?" Peter asked moving forward and grabbing Dante by the front of his shirt. "Peter stop, it's a good chance he blacked out and he really doesn't remember what he said or did," Neal said as he put a hand on Peter's forearm and giving it a light squeeze. "Let's just have some coffee; I really need it after the night I had," Neal remarked as he slowly let Peter's arm go and walked out to the table on the terrace. Peter looked at Dante "I don't care if you had a black out or not but know this if you ever lay a hand on Neal again you can trust me when I say it will not end well for you," Peter warned as he walked away from Dante to join Neal at the table.

"How are you feeling?" he asked with a worried tone as he sat down. Neal looked up and gave Peter a charming smile "I'm feeling much better, I was going to ask you if you had plans this Saturday…because I wanted to invite you to my family reunion" Neal said with a smile as he leaned in closer to Peter, neither one noticing Dante standing in the doorway or listening in on their conversation.

Dante walked away from the doorway as June came back upstairs with the coffee; he pulled his cell phone out and dialed another long distance number and waited until the other line picked up as he walked out of June's and leaned against Peter's car "Grandfather it's Dante…we need to talk about Neal," Dante said as he kept an eye on the door. The older man on the other end sighed signaling to the other man to continue "He's bringing his FBI handler to the reunion on Saturday," Dante informed. "Thank you Dante, I will take it from here and I will see you this weekend," the older Caffarelli said before hanging up and dialing another number. "Victor, we need to talk about that boy of yours. It seems that his time with the FBI is making him forget who he's loyal to, it looks we'll have to show him," he said before hanging up on his son.


	3. Chapter 3

** I do not own, I do not make money all I ask for is for some loving reviews and I hope you enjoy this chapter where we get to meet Neal's "loving" family. haha thanks to my loyal fans and Peppe for betaing again**

**Chapter 3: Meeting the Dragon**

Neal felt his heart racing as he stood by the railing of the staircase. Peter found it amusing in seeing the younger man looking so nervous. "I've never see you like this, what has you so rattled?" Peter asked hoping that talking about it would help calm his partner's nerves. "I haven't seen my family for a really long time," Neal said as he began to pace a bit which made Peter laugh under his breath. When the last of the food was set up and the men from the caterers had left to take a smoke break Neal checked his watch, Elizabeth had left early for an emergency at a wedding she was planning leaving Neal to finish the setting up.

Peter had come to the party for three reasons the first being that he was invited, and the second being that the party was outside Neal's radius and he needed an escort and third being that the cable was out and there was nothing to do at home. "Neal the party is in an hour, you need to calm down; you're acting like you're going to meet your in laws," Peter commented as he caught Neal by the arm and stopped him from making another pass in front of him.

"You don't know my family Peter…I'm the innocent one…so to speak," Neal said with a weak smile. "How are you the innocent one? You've gone to jail twice, you jumped out of a federal judge's chamber, and you stole from the Italian embassy, you broke into a clinic, you technically stole a painting and gave a museum a fake, " Peter remarked as he recounted a few of Neal's crimes. Neal smiled a bit "I did all that but I never used weapons any of those times, but my family does," the ex con said as he looked around the nervously.

With a small chuckle Peter sat Neal down on the closet chair "Sit there and take a few deep breaths; and when you've calmed your nerves you can stand up and find me for a reward," Peter said as he walked off to look at the food and drink choice that Neal and Elizabeth had put together.

_It's like walking into a different country…I sort of feel like those people that go out and study herds of animals to see how they interact,_ Peter thought as he looked over his shoulder at Neal who was struggling to calm down, and after a moment he walked over and motioned for Neal to stand up. "You get one small one and that's it for now," Peter said as he leaned over and gave Neal a quick peck on the lips before pulling away. Neal smirked "I told you that I haven't seen them in years, I need more than a peck on the lips. Don't worry, we're alone," Neal remarked as he grabbed Peter and pulled him into a lip crushing kiss.

"Hey Neal… ah… would you two get a room…a private one," Dante yelled as he un-covered his eyes to see Neal and Peter apart. Neal sighed "We were alone until you walked in and interrupted us, now what was so important that you had to walk in on us?" Neal asked in an annoyed tone. Dante stood there for a moment trying to remember "Oh right, Grandfather said he wanted to speak with you before the party; he said it was very important," Dante said purposely not looking Neal in the eyes.

Peter felt Neal's hand on his chest "It's fine Peter don't worry," Neal said with a weak smile as the doors opened revealing six men that Peter had never seen before each one was just as handsome as the other. The men parted as if they were a flock of birds in formation creating a half circle the eldest man in the center.

Bowing slightly Neal knew a talk with his grandfather meant the head of the family was upset with him. "Grandfather it has been a long time, how is Grandmother is she well?" Neal asked as he walked forward towards his grandfather.

"Don't be a smart ass boy," the old man said as he rapped Neal on the head with his cane. Neal rubbed his head with a weak chuckle. "I'm sorry sir; you wished to speak to me about an important matter?" Neal asked keeping his eyes locked with his grandfather.

Peter held his ground as his eyes scanned the men standing in the half circle; it was then he noticed Dante had moved to his spot in the circle beside one of the older men that had to be father. _ It seems they go by generation and age on either side of Neal's grandfather. So if that's true the man next to Neal's father must be his older brother… I never knew he even had a brother._ Peter thought as he stood frozen to the spot.

Angelo tapped his cane on the ground a couple times "I'm wondering why you would be so idiotic in your thoughts to bring someone like him here…"he said as he pointed his cane at Peter.

"I had to Grandfather, he is an escort or else I would be arrested, I can send him out of the room if it bothers you," Neal said bowing his head again. "It's pointless he's already seen our face, you Burke…you're going to be considered family in the most basic aspects, anything you hear today is secret and I would advise you not to utter a word of it, we'll be back in an hour for the party, " Angelo said turning away and walking back to his family. Leading the other men out of the hall Angelo kept his voice low "the punishment still goes as planned, maybe then he'll learn some loyalty to his family," Angelo said as he led his family back to the suite.

Neal moved over to an open chair and sat down as he felt faint. "I forgot how strenuous seeing my family can be," he said softly. Peter walked over to Neal and smiled "You were really brave, I can see why you were so nervous, your grandfather is a very serious man," Peter remarked as he looked the younger man over "Are you feeling all right? You look a little pale," he said with a worried tone.

Waving the agent off Neal put his head down between his knees and started to breathe heavy. Peter moved to Neal's side and pulled him into his arms "Now I know something is wrong and if you keep breathing like this you're going to pass out," Peter said as he rubbed Neal's back to calm him down. "I had a flashback of Colin again, I didn't mean to worry you," he said softly

Once Neal's breathing had returned to normal Peter slowly began to pull his arms away he felt Neal still holding on, with a sigh he put his arms back around Neal. "It's almost time for the party you need to calm down," he said as he managed to pull away.

* * *

When the party began Neal grabbed Peter by the arm and dragged him around to introduce him to the family, know that the easiest way to break the ice was to start with the children and the cousins. "Peter I want you to meet my cousins and their families, Dante you know, and this is Romano and his wife Lise and their daughters Nela and Luka, over there is Adrian and his girlfriend Celestia and their daughter Chantel," Neal said as he pointed everyone out to the agent.

"Are you planning on introducing me, or do I have to do it myself?" a voice asked as it came up behind Peter and Neal. Neal gave a soft groan and turned around with Peter to face a man who was just as handsome as Neal but his hair was a few shades lighter. "Right…Peter this is my older brother Nicolai, the only reason you never heard about him when you were doing all your background studies is because he went to live in Eastern Europe and Russia since he was seventeen," Neal added as he slowly began to pull Peter off towards the others.

Peter smirked "this is a pretty big family, I always had a feeling you came from a big family, it seems like they tolerate me pretty well. So who else is there to meet?" he asked under his breath as Neal dragged him over to a pair of couples. "Peter, these are my parents, Natasha and Victor and this is my Uncle Vincent and Aunt Bianca. Everyone this is Peter my good friend and handler at the FBI everyone here would know him better as the man who finally caught me," Neal said with a smile.

Victor looked the agent over before looking at his youngest son for a moment before speaking "So you're the lucky agent that was in the right place at the right time. I always knew Neal would eventually screw up and get caught," Victor remarked ignoring the glare his wife was giving him.

Neal gave a very forced smile to his mother "It's alright mom, in a way I did screw up and in the end Peter caught me. I was cocky and stupid and it caught up with me in the end," Neal said softly. Victor laughed "See honey he's learning from his mistakes and this way next time he won't be so stupid. Now you can go off and talk with the others Neal, I'm done with you," he added waving his youngest son away, Peter watched in silence as his partner started to walk away.

"You're wrong about Neal he is smart, funny, creative. He may dress like a cartoon, and he may annoy me at times but I wouldn't have anyone else as a partner. You should be proud of him instead of treating him dirt," Peter said as he walked over to Neal and lead him away. "Don't listen to him Neal," he said as he tried to comfort his partner. With his forced smile still plastered on his face Neal looked at Peter "I kind of want to be alone right now, I'll come look for you in a little bit," he remarked as he walked off across the room to the backroom. Not wanting to show weakness in front of his family Neal closed the door and made his way over to the window and leaned on the windowsill and sighed loudly.

* * *

As the door handle clicked open Neal sighed "Peter I told you I wanted to be alone," Neal said as he turned around to find his brother standing there. "Nicolai I'm not really in the mood right now to talk, I just want to be alone," he said looking back out at the city. Nicolai chuckled and walked farther into the storage area "Neal you're my baby brother and I came to check on you…dad and grandpa really let you have it today, how's your head anyway?" he asked as he reached out and ruffled Neal's hair out of place.

"Nick go away, you brought a girlfriend go bother her I want to be left alone right now," Neal repeated as he tried to collect himself. Letting out a laugh Nicolai moved aside "She's talking with mom right now, grandfather wanted me to come talk to you and remind you that you are still part of this family."Nicolai said as he cracked his knuckles "I can't promise it won't hurt but I can promise that there won't be any bruises," he said as he grabbed his brother by the arm and twisted it hard so he was pinned against the wall. "You know Dante told me about your new boyfriend…"Nicolai said as gave Neal's arm another twist until he felt his brother's arm dislocate.

Neal cried out in pain as he managed to pull away and move into the corner "Dante is lying; there is nothing going on between Peter and me, when the four years are up I'm getting as far away from the FBI as possible and moving back home," Neal lied as he looked at his brother. Nicolai swung his hand and slapped Neal. "Don't lie, it's pretty obvious you're in love and you have no intention of coming back to your old life. So stop bullshitting me. Grandfather said you can stay a little pet con to the FBI but if you ever turn on the family you will regret it. Don't even think the FBI can protect you or that new boyfriend of yours or his pretty wife," Nicolai warned as he slammed his fist against Neal's shoulder resetting it back into place. "Why don't you come back out now before someone gets suspicious," he said with a smirk before leaving the storage room.

Groaning in pain Neal rubbed his shoulder while he sat on the floor, closing his eyes for a moment as he waited for the first wave of pain in his shoulder to go away. When he looked up he saw Peter standing in the doorway. He looked at the floor as he waved Peter into the room. "I saw your brother come out of here and I got worried when I didn't see you, is everything alright?" the FBI agent asked as he made his way past the stacked chairs and tables to where his consultant was sitting.

"He was just reminding me about family values and how I need to remember them is all, nothing too serious, so are you enjoy yourself at all?" Neal asked trying to push the topic off him-self. Peter grabbed a chair and sat across from Neal "Well it's nice to meet your family, but I can tell that you're not having fun. You don't have to worry; it isn't much longer until it's over," Peter said with a smile. "The timing is just perfect we can even catch the game on later" he added.

The ex con smiled "It sounds like fun and after a day like this mindless sports sounds like fun. Do you mind if I watch with you for a while?" Neal asked with his best pout. Peter nodded "El called while you were in here. It seems the bride had a melt down over the location and now she wants to move the wedding so El took an emergency flight to the Hamptons. She'll be gone for a week apparently," Peter said with a sigh.

* * *

As the party came to a close Neal said his goodbyes to his cousins and their families "The next time any of you are in the city for work or vacation please call me. If I can get cleared I will come see you guys for Christmas…bye girls," Neal said as he hugged Nela, Luka and Chantel. "I will miss you three" Neal said wincing with pain as he stood up and moved around the group till he came to his grandfather and grandmother.

"Grandmother it's so nice to see you again I promise to call you more," he said smiling. Caprice smiled "Oh my little Tesoro you call me any time you want and don't worry about your father he was always a pain in the ass since he was a child," She said as she hugged Neal who nearly cried out as the pain in his shoulder intensified. Neal looked over at his grandfather blinking away his tears.

"It was nice seeing you again Grandfather; I hope you enjoyed the party…and I hope you'll grow to like me better in the future…" Neal lied as he shook his grandfather's hand even though it made him want to scream in pain. Once he had said goodbye to his cousins, grandparents and his aunt and Uncle Neal walked over to his parents and brother and his brother's girlfriend.

Neal hugged his mother carefully first. By that time his shoulder was screaming in pain "You should come visit more often mom, you guys don't live that far. I can take you shopping and to lunch, Nicolai…dad…yeah…Catherine... nice meeting you"Neal said as he walked away to where Peter was waiting for him. "Can we just go now? It's been a really long day" Neal said softly.

Peter nodded and walked beside Neal and got into the car. "Before you even ask, yes you can stay the night," he said as he unlocked the car and got in. Neal smiled and closed the car door behind him. "We should talk about the case tonight also; I've been putting it off for the last couple days because I've been worried about going undercover… worried is the wrong word I've been scared out of my mind, I just keep thinking back to Colin and the photo shoot job and I panic," Neal admitted.

* * *

Peter started the car up and drove back to his place and parked out front. Neal bit his lip as he got out of the car trying to ignoring the pain ripping through his shoulder. Once they were inside Neal retreated to the couch and snuggled up against the arm of the couch on his good side. He watched Peter as he kicked off his shoes and hung up his jacket with a wishful look. Peter looked over at his partner and noticed that Neal was watching him but not making a move.

_He's usually all over me or trying to seduce me, maybe seeing his family did this… or maybe one of his family members did this to him. The only time he was away from my side was when he was alone with his brother,_ Peter thought as he watched the other man closely for any signs of injury but after watching Neal for a couple minutes without seeing anything suspicious he shrugged his shoulders and walked into the kitchen and grabbed a beer. When he came back he found Neal struggling to reach for the television remote. "Need any help?"Peter asked as he became uneasy as he watched Neal try to sit up using one arm.

"I'm fine…I was getting it for you so you could watch the game," Neal lied as he watched Peter sit down beside him. "That's very thoughtful of you… you must want something in return?" he asked as he grabbed the remote off the table. "No, I'm fine with just watching TV for now and then we can share some dinner…" Neal said as he watched Satchmo lumber over and nuzzle his hand to be petted. Groaning in pain softly Neal moved his arm and slowly as he stroked Satchmo's head a couple times not realizing that Peter was watching him.

Neal looked up when he felt Peter's gaze on him; it was at that very moment he knew Peter knew about his injury. Peter put his beer down on the coffee table. "Pick that up," he ordered pointing at the beer. Neal reached over with his good arm and grasped the neck of the bottle and began to lift. "No… use your other hand," Peter said pushing Neal's hand down so the beer was back on the table. Neal released the bottle and grasped it with his other hand; he bit his lip and began to lift his arm up painfully.

Peter watched as Neal struggled in pain to lift the bottle but when he reached his breaking point Neal released the bottle only to have it bounce off the table and spill on the floor. Peter quickly grabbed the bottle and cleaned up the mess with paper towels before going back to the kitchen and getting an ice pack and bringing it back to Neal. "You need to ice this right away or it will get worse," Peter said as he pressed the ice pack against Neal's shoulder causing him to hiss at the cold seeping through his shirt.

"If I known that injuring myself would get you to put your hands on me I would hurt myself more often," Neal said with a smirk. Peter pressed the ice pack harder into Neal's shoulder making him wince in pain. "Well don't get any ideas of injuring yourself or I may have to put an injury to a part of your anatomy that you won't like," Peter remarked as he stood up. Neal smirked at Peter. "Where might that be?" he asked suggestively.

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes at the younger man Peter let go of the ice pack when Neal had a grip on it. "Your backside; now hold this here I'm going to get you something for the pain then I want to get you into bed," Peter said as he saw Neal smirk, "and I didn't mean it like that," he grumbled as he left Neal alone for a moment before going to the medicine cabinet. With a small grunt Neal got a little more comfortable on the couch and looked at Satchmo and smiled at him as Peter came back down with a bottle of pills and a cup of water. "Take three of these and then it's off to bed alone for you," Peter said putting the three pills in Neal's good hand.

Neal smiled and popped the pills into his mouth before grabbing the cup and downing the water to swallow the pills. Once he was done Neal handed the cup back and put the ice back against his shoulder. "While I'm resting in bed could you tell me a bit about this case?" Neal requested as he got up and followed Peter to the second floor and walked into the guest room.

"Fine, at least until you fall asleep; now lie down and get comfortable," Peter said as he patted the bed. Neal pouted as he sat on the bed "I can't sleep with my clothes on; I think I still have something here to wear in the bottom drawer of that dresser. I can undress myself I just need help with shoes and my shirt," Neal remarked leaning back on his good arm.

The FBI agent sat on the desk chair and untied Neal's shoes before pulling them off and dropping them on the floor. "Now hold still or you will be doing this yourself," Peter said as he slowly unbuttoned Neal's shirt for him and helped him take off his shirt once the shirt was off he walked over to the small closet and hung it up. Neal slowly took his pants and boxers off before he got into his silk pajama bottoms on. "You can turn around now," he said as he climbed into bed and got comfortable.

Peter sighed as he sat back in his chair as he thought about what to say about the case. "We want you to just go into this club and gather information; now you'll have an ear piece on throughout the whole time and a microphone so we can record everything. You have to be the fly on the wall this time, other than getting hired you don't have to do anything," Peter said as he watched Neal drift off to sleep.

_It looks like it was a good idea to use the painkillers with the sleep aid he looks like he could use some sleep,_ Peter thought as he tucked Neal in carefully and made his way back downstairs. Once he was back downstairs he went into the kitchen and began to rummage through the fridge when the doorbell rang.

* * *

Peter groaned as he closed the fridge door and walked out to the front door where he saw Diana waiting for him, he opened the door for her. "Come in, do you want something to drink?" he asked leading the other agent into the dining room. Diana smiled "No, I just came to inform you that another four sculptures were sent out this morning, we did find out that the sculptures weighed more after they left the warehouse," Diana said as she sat down at the table. Peter sighed as he walked over to the coffee table and grabbed the case file. "That means something is being smuggled in the statues. If that is all, you could have called," Peter commented knowing that that the other agent was there for a reason.

"Is it that obvious? I came to hear all about Neal's family, so what are they like what did they look like?" Diana asked curiously. Peter chuckled "Have you ever seen those vampire movies where everyone swarms around and they all walk in synchronized step? It was just like that mixed with the Godfather. But that's not the half of it, Neal's cousins were very nice as were their children wives and girlfriends, his aunt mother and grandmother as well… it was Neal's father, brother and grandfather that really let him have it," Peter said not wanting to go into too much detail.

Diana was practically salivating at the information "What did they do to him?" Diana asked her interest piqued at that point. Peter mulled it over for a moment before speaking. "His grandfather reprimanded him for bringing me and struck him on the head with his cane, his father belittled him and called him a screw up and I believe his brother dislocated his shoulder then reset it… I have no idea why. I couldn't get the information out of Neal," Peter said as he looked at the file photo paper clipped on the top.

"We have to be careful with Neal on this case he told me he's scared out of his mind that something will go wrong. So we have to prep him and keep him calm or he's going to blow his cover," Peter said with a sigh as he tapped his fingers on the table. Diana sighed "That could be a problem, we have to move quickly though; the higher ups are starting to really push for something to happen," she said grabbing the folder and looking at the case file. Peter rubbed his chin for a moment "I'll have him ready in time," he said glancing toward the stairs.

* * *

"Peter I can't do this…I just keep flashing back and…"Neal said as he felt Peter grab him by the side of his face and force him to look up at him. "We're right here, nothing is going to happen to you I promise and I will keep this promise. We've taken days to prep you and I know you can do it," Peter said looking into Neal's eyes hoping to get him to calm down.

Neal nodded and slowly pulled away and slipped the ear piece into his ear and grabbed the necklace with the hidden microphone only to have it taken away. Peter slipped the necklace around Neal's neck and clasped it. "Now Diana is down on the street and Jones and I will be up here listening. Now get going or you're going to miss your audition," Peter said shooing Neal out of the small apartment with a light swat to his butt. Neal looked at Peter with a smirk before taking in a deep breath and walking down the stairs and through the lobby to the crowded street and with another deep breath he crossed the street and opened the door of the club. "You're doing good…" Peter said through the ear piece as he watched Neal disappear inside.


	4. Chapter 4

**Here is chapter 4 the warnings and disclaimers are the same I would like to thank my fans for reading and Peppe again for betaing and my most loyal fan for reviewing, Once again chapter four everyone please enjoy and pretty... pretty please review I'll give you a cookie if you review.**

**Chapter 4: Entering the Dragon's Den**

Neal looked around the club as he made his way toward the stage where he saw a young man sitting on a stool on the stage talking with a group of men. "Peter…I can't do this..." Neal whispered under his breath. Peter looked at Jones and waved him off for a moment to clear the room. Jones left the room with a small smirk knowing that Peter wanted to talk to Neal alone. "Neal… I'm right here so just sing to me" Peter said softly.

With a small smile Neal walked up to the stage and waited 'till the man looked at him. "I'm Lark…I answered the ad for a male singer; I hope I'm not too late," Neal said keeping himself from shaking with nerves. "No not too late at all, and call me Jordan and since you are the last to join us you can go first," Jordan said as he got up from the stool and motioned for the others to leave the stage.

"I hope this goes well I haven't sung in a while," Neal said as he walked over to the spot marked on the stage. Jordan smiled "Just do your best," he said as he took a seat at the table closest to the stage and set his eyes on Neal as the other men trying out moved behind him. Taking in a few deep breaths Neal closed his eyes and started to sing.

Come near and stand by me, baby.  
Close enough to reach out and pull you still closer,  
All that is swelling within me,  
Must be a language I've never spoken 'till there was you,  
I fumbled, try but I stumbled,  
Over all my heart wants to say now,

Je n'ai pas de mots,  
nothing seems to say the way you move me,  
rushing through me,

Je n'ai pas de mots,  
But a promise has been made you can believe this,  
from the first kiss,  
It's good that I don't have to speak to know that it's real,  
Je n'ai pas de mots.

Jordan stood up "that was amazing, I'm going to stop you there so we can get through everyone but I want you to stick around for the next round of eliminations," he said as he waved Neal over to sit beside him at the table. _He was amazing and three others walked out already, it doesn't matter I want him anyway he's perfect,_ Jordan thought as he barely listened to the next singer before waving him away. Neal twirled the microphone on his necklace as he tried to sit still.

Peter rolled his eyes "Neal quit it, you're causing interference on the microphone," Peter hissed as he sat back in the chair as he looked at Jones beside him. Neal gave a small smile and released the necklace and tried not to fidget in his seat as he watched the other men try out and be waved away.

_He's waved three more off; there are only two more left and they are going to get waved off fast…it looks like I'm the winner, _Neal thought as he looked around a bit for where to put the undercover agents.

"Well thank you all, but I think I've found my new songbird for the club. Everyone else can leave now," Jordan said showing the others to the door before walking back to where Neal was sitting. "Now since you're going to be working for me I have a few rules, first all my employees live above the club in the apartments, next I ask that you don't go to the fourth floor unless invited that's my home and I like my privacy. Now I'm going to let you go home and pack I expect you back here tomorrow morning promptly at six," Jordan said as he shook Neal's hand.

Neal smiled "I'll be on time, thank you so much for the job," he said with another smile as he left the club and made his way down the sidewalk. Pulling his cell phone out of his pocket he opened it and held it up to his ear. "Hey… I got the job, no I didn't even need a follow up…I'm going to flag a cab and head home. Maybe we could have an early dinner," Neal said as he walked down the sidewalk.

Peter walked over to the window and looked out at Neal on the sidewalk "You're being tailed by one of the bouncers, just act natural and go to June's. Be sure to take the route we discussed earlier and change cabs if you think you're being followed. You're going to go out of range when you leave this area so call me on your cell," Peter said as he watched Neal hail a cab.

* * *

Jones stood up and stretched "I'll keep an eye on the place if you want to go meet up with Neal; then you can talk to him about the case some more and what to do next. Don't worry, I'll call you if anything changes," he said watching Peter as he collected his things. "I want you and Diana to be careful we don't know a lot about this guy; he has bouncers everywhere," Peter warned as he took the freight elevator to the back exit of the building where his car was parked.

Driving through the city Peter stopped at a market and picked up a few things before driving to June's where he grabbed the shopping bags and went inside to find Neal's apartment still empty. "He must have had take a second cab, which means I can start dinner," Peter mumbled as he unpacked the frozen dinner while he started to root around for a pan. Once he found a pan and some olive oil he heated the pan before dumping the food into the pan and covering it.

Peter continued to unpack the shopping bags and put the other items in the fridge before going back to the dinner on the stove. After a couple quick stirs he replaced the cover and waited for Neal. He should be walking through that door any minute unless he hit traffic, Peter thought as he turned the TV on and searched for a game.

Neal got out of the cab in front of June's and paid the driver _I lost him at the bookstore and now I have to look forward to Peter's pot-roast, _Neal thought as he walked inside and shut the door behind him before heading up the stairs, and with each step he noticed a fragrant smell that wasn't connected to any pot roast he knew of. As he got to his apartment he was greeted with the smell of chicken. "You made chicken? I didn't know you knew how to make chicken," Neal said in awe as he walked over to the stove and uncovered the meal. "Peter I'm amazed that you can make this," Neal remarked as he stirred the food a bit.

With a sarcastic chuckle Peter got up from the couch and took the spoon from Neal and continued to stir. "You know I used to be single and I cooked all my own meals," Peter remarked in a defending tone making Neal smirk. "I never really learned to cook, not when I could get a free meal at some of the best restaurants money could buy," Neal admitted as he walked over to his wine rack and started to look it over.

"So to change the subject from anything illegal I may or may not have done, what did you think about my singing?"Neal asked as he pulled a bottle from the shelf and walked over to the counter to find the cork screw. Peter turned the stove off and moved the pan to a cool burner. "The last time I heard you sing you were under the influence of sedatives so it was quite amazing I must admit," Peter said as he got out two plates and put them on the table and served dinner.

Neal smiled but when he went over to retrieve the wine glasses he noticed something on the counter… a plastic bag. He grabbed it and turned it over "Oh… I think I understand how you survived now…frozen dinners from the store how cute… I like the effort though, it was sweet," Neal remarked as he uncorked the wine and poured two glasses.

Peter served dinner and took a glass from Neal before taking his seat. "I'm supposed to talk to you about the case and what you have to do next. Neal, you have to befriend this Jordan guy and find out why he ships the statues out all over the world," Peter said as he ate a couple bites of dinner. "Now Neal, you're not going to want to hear this but we have to limit seeing each other, if this Jordan guy gets too suspicious it could blow the case and put you in danger…we'll still be in contact through the ear piece when it's needed but we have been ordered to keep radio silence unless there is an absolute emergency. I've also been told that you and I need to come up with an activation phrase for you to use in case you need help right away," Peter said as he ate.

Neal paused for a moment and lowered his wine glass "I…fine…and it should be Kate…it's perfect no one else would suspect it," Neal remarked as he grabbed his fork and began to eat in silence. Right away Peter knew that the silent treatment was impending, "It's not my choice…I will make it up to you," Peter promised as he ate dinner, Neal looked up and smiled a bit at Peter.

"I intend on collecting on that promise… you know I thought you would tell me to cowboy up and do anything to get evidence for you guys," Neal remarked as he finished up his dinner before grabbing his wine glass and swirling the red liquid and watched it. "You asked me earlier in the week why my brother dislocated my shoulder; well my grandfather told him that he could tell me that I could stay a pet con to the FBI as long as I never turned on the family… if I ever did that he made it pretty obvious that the FBI wouldn't be able to protect me, you or Elizabeth… the dislocated shoulder was his way of making sure I would remember that he wasn't joking," Neal said as he downed the rest of his wine.

* * *

Peter sat in shock for a moment before he grabbed both plates to the sink and began to do the dishes. When he finished the dishes he found Neal packing a large duffle bag. Peter then grabbed his glass of wine and walked over to the end of Neal's bed and watched the other man pack. "I'm curious to know how you plan on redeeming my promise," Peter asked as he finished his wine. Neal turned around and smirked at his partner; he grabbed his bag and tossed it on the floor before he advanced towards Peter.

"I plan on handcuffing you to the bed and then I'm going on a crime spree," Neal smirked as he produced Peter's handcuffs from his back pocket. "When did you manage to lift these?" Peter asked in pure shock, he never saw Neal get close enough to lift his cuffs. "The quick prep in the apartment, that time when you pinned me against the wall to keep me from panicking," Neal admitted with another smirk. Peter made a grab for the cuffs "If you think that using cuffs during sex is a turn on for me it's not, arresting you is," Pete said grabbing the cuffs from Neal and walking off.

Neal smirked "Did you just reveal something about your private life?" Neal asked as he walked back over to the counter and refilled his glass. "So you would like a reason to cuff me or just to do it for fun," Neal commented as he poured another glass for himself and Peter before going back to his bag to finish packing. "Peter… this guy… there is something about him that just rubs me the wrong way. The way he wants all his employees close means that he's worried about them spilling his secrets," Neal remarked in a worried tone.

The FBI agent walked in a circle for a moment "He's paranoid…and he has power over everyone it can be a very dangerous combination sometimes but as long as you play to his weakness then he'll be like a kitten," Peter remarked as he left his glass on the table before walking over to the fridge.

"I heard for a very reliable source that you have one weakness… other than Kate." Peter remarked as he pulled a medium sized cake out of the fridge and put it on the table. He watched Neal's eyes sparkle at the sight of the cake. "Red Velvet with cream cheese icing…Peter I'm touched, you're not trying to buy me off are you?"Neal asked as he practically licked his lips at the idea of eating the cake. "I thought maybe it could be used as payment to make up for forcing you into working undercover after everything," Peter said as he took off the cover off the cake.

* * *

As his alarm rang Neal groaned and sat up in bed "A four a.m. wake up, who gets up this early?" Neal mumbled as he got out of bed noticing that he wasn't wearing any pajama pants. _I don't remember much after cake and wine, _Neal thought as he grabbed his robe and put it on and made his way over to the table where he saw a note pad and a bottle. "Will be back in an hour to pick you up; drink this for your hangover… if you don't drink it I will force you to drink it, Peter…" Neal read out loud as he looked at the homemade drink he had once before.

Wincing at the thought of drinking the mix he uncapped the bottle and downed it quickly; before gagging a bit Neal put the bottle back down on the table and sat down and put his head in his hands trying to remember the night before. Neal closed his eyes and ended up falling asleep again due to the early wake up.

"Neal… Neal….it's time to wake up sleeping beauty" Dante whispered in his cousin's ear as he tried to wake him, and not wanting to give up Dante pinched Neal's arm making him jump. "Hey there hot stuff…" Dante said with a smirk as he walked around the apartment as Neal rubbed his eyes and stood up. "Dante what are you doing here… wait how did you get in here this early?" Neal asked looking up to see Dante holding up a tool kit. "Of course, hey what time is it I need to be ready soon," Neal said as he made his way to the bathroom to shower.

Dante wandered around the apartment looking for any signs of something to use for future blackmail. As he walked around the dimly lit apartment he used his skills as an Interpol agent to read the room. He read the note left behind and started to look at the kitchen area. _Two empty wine bottles, two glasses, two plates which means they had dinner and desert which means a date…I wonder if that means they slept together_ Dante thought as he walked over to the bed as saw twisted and then untwisted sheets.

Neal finished his shower and walked over to the mirror and wiped the condensation off to reveal his reflection. As he started to dry his hair he noticed small bruises dotting his neck and shoulders. When he touched them he tried to dredge up some memories but all he got was blank spots. Neal stared at his reflection recounting anything he could, he could remember the case and the tryout, and he could remember the cake and finishing the first bottle of wine before opening a second bottle. _What happened between the end of that second bottle and when I woke up?_ Neal thought as he grabbed his robe and put it back on and left the bathroom to find his cousin perusing his wine selection.

"Don't you think it's a little early to hit the bottle?" Neal asked as he walked over to the bedroom area of his apartment. When he looked at the bed he felt sudden feelings that were accompanied by flashes of memory and surges of pleasure up his spine. Dante walked up beside and smacked him on the arm. "You sure are taking a long time to get dressed. Are you maybe remembering something from last night?" Dante asked as he ran his fingers over Neal's neck where his many small hickeys were.

Neal felt a spark of memory as the door to the apartment opened revealing Peter carrying two cups of coffee. "Neal, are you up yet I brought coffee," Peter said as he watched Dante move away from his cousin. "I'll see you later Neal… good luck on your job…" Dante said as he disappeared into the dark hallway. Peter didn't make eye contact with Neal as he walked over and handed him the disposable cup of coffee. "What happened last night? Tell me everything you can remember," Neal said as he nursed the warm cup in his hands. Peter finished his coffee and looked at the younger man. "Hurry up and get dressed we have to get you to the club on time," Peter said stonewalling the younger man's question.

Neal looked at Peter "No…you are going to tell me right now or I walk from this job and you can find someone else to put their life on the line," he said putting his foot down on the subject. Peter walked to the trash and threw his coffee cup away "I'll tell you in the car we have to hurry up or we'll hit traffic and you'll be late," Peter reminded as he walked away to give Neal some privacy. Not willing to let it go Neal quickly gulped down his coffee and gathered up his clothes from his drawers before going to his bathroom to change. Peter looked around the room and as his eyes raked over the bed he began to flashback to earlier that night.

When Neal exited the bathroom he noticed that Peter was ready by the door with both of his bags. "Once I get there I am falling back into bed and sleeping the rest of the day away, I just feel like I didn't get enough sleep," Neal remarked sleepily as he took one bag from Peter and walked down the dark hall, down the stairs and out the front door to where Peter had parked his car. Peter silently opened the doors and put the bags in the back seat before getting behind the wheel and taking off once Neal had closed the door. Neal glanced over at Peter as he drove through the city.

"We're in the car now are you going to tell me what happened last night or not," Neal demanded as he hugged his bag a bit closer. Peter glanced at Neal as he pulled up to a red light the eerie glow bathing the younger man. Just as he was about to speak the light changed saving him from having to speak. "I'll tell you later, I need to concentrate on driving right now" he said knowing it was a bold face lie and know that he was delaying the obvious. "You said you would tell me in the car and we're in the car so spill it Peter what happened last night? I know we drank a lot of wine so that explained the drink you left behind but I'm a little fuzzy on the rest of the night," Neal admitted as he ruffled his hair a bit to flatten the remainder of his bed head that hadn't stayed down from when he brushed his hair earlier.

With a small glance Peter looked at Neal before speaking. "So you want to know what happened, we got drunk and we ended up sleeping together…when I woke up I sat up for a while thinking things over and I remembered the repercussions of what could happen if the bureau found out. So I've decided that we shouldn't see each other anymore, I'm drawing the line right here and now we are no longer an item; you are the CI again and I am the agent and that's it." Peter said as he turned down another street he knew it would be hard for Neal to hear the truth even if it was for his protection.

Neal felt his words die on his tongue as he swallowed the lump growing in his throat. "Stop the car…I'll walk from here," Neal said as he tried to keep his emotions in check and not let Peter see him break apart. Peter hit the lock on his side of the car locking all the car doors. "It's not that far I'll drive you," he said trying to get Neal to think rationally. Neal unlocked his door "I said pull over the damn car Peter!" Neal yelled his voice breaking up slightly; he was unaware that he was back in range of the surveillance team and that they could hear everything from that point on. "No, we're almost there!"Peter yelled back as he punched the gas after the red light and came up to the front of the club before he pulled to the side of the road and put the car in park.

Not waiting for Peter to say anything Neal grabbed his other bag out of the back and got out of the car and slammed the door as hard as he could before going into the club as it closed for the day and getting pointed toward the VIP section.

* * *

Jordan hung up his call as he saw Neal coming up the small flight of stairs and hurried to let him into the well decorated VIP section. "Lark… I wasn't expecting for a while… but I'm glad you're early; we can get you set up in a room and you can get used to the place before you go on tonight," Jordan said with a smile.

Neal tried to return the smile and failed "I don't know if I can perform tonight, I… I just don't have it in me; I'm going through a rough patch right now and I was just dumped harshly by someone who shall remain nameless but all I'll say is he was a real bastard," Neal remarked with spite as he dropped his bags on the floor as he sat down in a low chair.

"That guy really does sound like a bastard, well you don't have work tonight… I'll show you to your room to rest and you can use the night any way you wish," Jordan said as he took Neal's bags and brought him to the elevator behind the stage and up to the third floor. "You'll be in the front apartment, don't worry; about unpacking just sleep now," he said as he left Neal alone.

Peter doubled back in silence and parked his car in the hidden parking lot before going up the freight elevator to the apartment the FBI was using for a surveillance post. As he opened the door he motioned for Diana to cut the feed to Neal's ear piece. "So how much of that did you two hear?" Peter asked hoping he could do some quick damage control. Diana looked over at Jones for a moment "Just Neal's outburst…what happened? ever since he got out of the car he's been pretty much bad mouthing you since he started talking to Wilson…I think he was cursing you out in Italian when he was walking into the club," Diana remarked as she saw Peter sigh.

"Do we know what room he's in?"Peter asked as he glanced out the window at the mostly dark club and apartments. "Third floor far left in front, we've got a good view into his room since we're looking down on the apartments from this floor," Jones said as he pointed the camera to Neal's window getting a better view of the ex con on the screen. Peter watched Neal and moved over to the controls and turned up the microphone volume on the necklace to hear him better.

Jones could feel the change in the air "I'm going out for coffee and breakfast I'll get the usual for you guys. I'll be back in a little while," he said as he left the small apartment. Diana turned to her boss and looked at him "I have a feeling you're going to try and talk to him; chances are he won't want to so I'll be in the next room if you need me," she said as she left quickly to give the other agent time to collect himself before trying to talk to Neal.

After a moment of preparation Peter turned the microphone on and cleared his throat as he watched Neal sit up on the monitor. "Before you get all upset and start pitching a fit again, can we just talk?"Peter asked calmly as he zoomed in on Neal to see the other man in better detail.

Neal rubbed his eyes dry to give himself time to clear the lump that had risen in his throat again. "Leave me alone Peter, I don't want to talk to you right now unless you want to crush my heart a little more for your own fun," Neal spat as he got up from his bed and walked around the room and leaned against the window and looked down at the street.

"Can I ask you one thing Peter…why did you say it then?" Neal asked softly forcing Peter to strain to hear Neal's words. "You don't remember do you, but it's funny that all it took for me to remember everything that happened was having the feeling of my heart being ripped out of my chest and crushed. So why don't you think about that while I try to get some sleep," Neal said as he walked away from the window and collapsed face first onto the bed and hugged the pillow tightly as he muffled a new wave of tears and heartache.

Peter sat back in his seat shocked as he watched Neal react to his original words… he hadn't meant to break Neal's heart… he had only wanted to protect him but he had made it worse. _How am I going to tell Elizabeth what I did?_ He asked himself as he heard the door open behind him. "Diana can I ask you something about something pretty important," Peter asked looking over his shoulder at the female agent. "Can I take a guess first; you want to know what to do now that you've done something that is outside your comfort zone, which could possibly threaten your job and your life with Elizabeth…" Diana guessed though she knew she was right on the money.

"Is it that obvious? Well I guess it's not normal for Neal to act like he wants my head on a pike…especially when he would be flirting with me all the time," Peter said as he reached over and turned the microphone to Neal's ear piece off before he continued.

"Last night I had dinner at Neal's and he had quite a bit of wine and it moved pretty fast," Peter said leaving out some details hoping what he said was enough information.

Diana smirked "I think I got it, you slept with Neal and at some point you said you loved him and now you're feeling guilty that you said it and before you dropped him off you broke up with him and that's why he's a total wreck now… well he's fallen asleep now so let him rest for a while before speaking to him again," Diana remarked as she took her spot by the veiled window to watch the so called bouncers in front of the club.

* * *

By two in the afternoon the FBI agents had begun to doze off with nothing going on at the club. Peter was startled awake by his phone going off, answering with a yawn as he looked at the monitor and saw Neal puttering around the room unpacking his things. "Peter Anthony Burke how dare you hurt Neal like that… I just got off the phone with him, he told me everything and I am utterly shocked that you would break his heart like that. You are so lucky I am still stuck in the Hamptons; as soon as this wedding is over I will be coming home and you and I are going to have a very…very long talk now I have to go… so fix this or you'll be making friends with the couch for the next two months!" Elizabeth said before hanging up on her husband.

Peter grabbed the microphone for Neal's earpiece before turning to Jones and Diana and pointing at the door; both agents knew right away that some heated words were going to fly, but as soon as they got out of the room they sighed.

"Neal… Neal!…you sicced my own wife on me? That's a low blow," Peter hissed into the microphone as he watched Neal come up to the window wearing nothing but a pair of low jeans and a smirk "All's fair in love and war Peter…now I have to go, you know… do your job for you," Neal said as he walked out of view to get dressed.

As he dug around for a shirt Neal stopped when he heard a knock on his door. _I hope Elizabeth really let him have it,_ Neal thought as he opened the door to find Jordan. "I was hoping you were awake, I have your contract that you need to sign and also we've got a little welcome party set up for you in my apartment so throw a shirt on and lets go," Jordan said as he watched the other man pull a shirt on over his head.

Neal fixed his hair before grabbing the contract out of Jordan's hand and reading it over. "Sounds reasonable enough, I can sign this right now," Neal said as he took the pen and signed with his moniker before handing the pen and contract back to Jordan. "You said something about a party, I can't wait," Neal said with a smile as he tried to win Jordan over to get more information.

Jordan smirked "I'm glad to see that you're doing better, after this party you'll forget all about what's his name in no time," he said as he pressed up button on the elevator. Neal felt his smile falter a bit. "Yeah…it would be nice to forget him for a while…Jordan… do you have any other hobbies other than running a club?" Neal asked trying to make small talk.

"Oh, we have plenty of time to do small talk later but now it's time to party," Jordan said as he led Neal out of the elevator and through a pair of large wooden doors into his vast apartment.


	5. Chapter 5

I do not own white collar if I did neal would sing more and be shirtless in more scenes I want to thank Peppe for betaing and my fans for reading I am sorry for taking so long to post this chapter classes have started up again so six will take a while and I hope you like chapter five and I hope people review.

Warning drugging and heart broken neal still

**Chapter 5: Chasing the Dragon**

Neal looked around the apartment its open floor plan reminded him of a gallery he once visited with Kate. "This is amazing, the Asian influence is very noticeable but at the same time subtle. My ex thought baseball pennants on the wall were works of art, he never got the beauty and story behind a Van Gogh or a Degas," Neal said as he looked at the landscape paintings on the rice paper scrolls.

"He sounds like a real catch, so if you two were so different how did you get along at all?" Jordan asked quite curious at that point. Neal thought quickly "We work together and you know the story… long nights at the office and built up sexual tension it was bound to happen. Hey, could I bother you for a drink maybe some wine, white if you have it?" Neal asked with a smile.

Peter chuckled into the microphone "late night sexual tension that's the best you could come up with?" he mused with a smirk that Neal could hear through his ear piece. Jordan nodded and walked off to get Neal's drink. Neal turned away so he was facing the scroll on the wall "What did you want me to tell him you were an FBI agent chasing me for three years…now leave me alone," Neal hissed as he turned back around before Jordan returned.

Jordan walked back over with two glasses of white wine "I thought I would join you and start off with some wine. So come on let me introduce the others," Jordan said as he led Neal over to a group sitting around a large hookah. "Everyone this is Lark, and in order that's Angie, Mark, Ty and Greta. You didn't meet them yesterday since they were just getting up, the club opens at nine and is open until five the next morning then everyone sleeps and gets up about three," Jordan explained. Neal smiled and gave a small wave "It's nice to meet you all, I'm glad I could get the job," Neal said as he took the seat he was offered between Greta and Angie. Jordan smirked as he sat beside Mark and Ty.

"Now everyone, be nice our new little songbird; he was dumped this morning by his boyfriend this morning when he was dropped off. Both Angie and Greta let out a simultaneous awe "You poor thing…that must have been terrible…how could he be so heartless," Angie said as she pulled Neal into a comforting side hug. "It's too bad you're gay; you're really good looking," Greta remarked with a sigh. Mark laughed at the girl's despair. "See Greta… you meet a great looking guy and he bats for the other team," he said laughing. Neal smirked "Why? Do you want me all for yourself… well let me tell you a little secret I'm bi so it works for everyone, you'll just have to wait your turn," he said giving Mark a wink.

After a good laugh the group calmed down and began to talk about work that night. Neal silently prayed they go get ready for work soon, he liked the others but their chatter about the mindless music or shows on television bored him to no end. Jordan noticed that his newest employee was growing bored. "Alright enough socializing, I want everyone to go get ready for the night. I'll be down later," Jordan said as he watched the group leave with the exception of Neal.

When they were alone Jordan moved around the round couch and sat beside Neal "You don't seem like the type to like what they like so I got rid of them. Don't worry I'm not going to hit on you, I have some patience to wait until you're over your ex," Jordan said as he finished his wine. Neal smiled at the other man "Thanks, I just need to get myself settled a bit… I think I'm going to go back to my room and relax for a while," Neal said as he put his glass down and stood up.

Jordan stood up and walked Neal to the door. "Before you go I thought I should let you know that the club uses a high radio cell phone jammer so that radio signals from passing cop cars or other clubs and businesses don't interfere with our music and the cell phone blocking is just so people's phones don't ring during music sets. I think people should be more respectful. Also another one of my silly rules is I ask that you keep any cell phone you might have on vibrate at all times especially during the day when everyone is trying to sleep," Jordan informed.

"I don't have a phone anymore; I left it in my ex's car by accident. I'll just have to get it back on my day off…well I should get going I still have some unpacking to do," Neal said as he walked down the short hall to the elevator and pushed the down button. He resisted to tap his foot as he waited when the elevator arrived he got in and pushed the third floor button and waited the fifteen seconds before he was on his floor. Walking quickly he went into his room and tried calm himself down before walking over to the window and looking around every few seconds glancing up at the fourth floor of the building across the street. "Diana…Jones can you two hear me?" Neal asked his voice holding a very worried tone.

Diana grabbed the microphone off the table "Calm down Neal we're right here and we heard everything, Jones is down on the street so when your signal goes dead I'll call him and he will find out how far the range is," Diana said as she did her best to calm Neal down. "Just so you know Peter took off for the night; he went to make sure Elizabeth got home all right and also she wanted to have a very long talk with him about your call," she added.

Neal smiled at the mental image "How has he been? Has he been a nervous wreck about this talk with her or was he calm?" Neal asked before he could stop himself, Diana smirked a bit before speaking. "When he wasn't dozing off or drinking coffee he was watching over you like a hawk, even though you were dead to the world asleep," she added. Neal sighed. "This is a step up from my prison cell and a step down from June's… we need to hurry up I can't take this much longer…" Neal mumbled. "I'm going downstairs to find something to eat," he added as he left his room and rode the elevator to the club and walked out to find Jordan waving him over to the VIP section, he walked over and took a seat on the plush couch.

"I had a feeling you would come down, and I also have a feeling that you came for food so I ordered out; how does Chinese sound? I sent one of my bouncers go pick up from my usual place. I didn't know what you liked so I ordered a little of everything," Jordan said as he sipped his beer. Neal smiled "Thanks, I haven't eaten since early last night," Neal said as watched people start to make their way inside the club he knew he wasn't performing yet but he was still nervous of the number of people there.

* * *

Peter looked up from the dining room table as Elizabeth walked in with her bags "Hey honey… I see your flight got in…and I'm still in serious trouble, aren't I?" Peter asked as he saw the look on his wife's face. "Well, that depends… have you fixed things with Neal yet?" she asked as she put her bag down on the floor. "About that…Neal really doesn't want to talk to me right now, he remembered everything that happened and so he's pretty mad at me for dumping him. I didn't mean to hurt him this badly I did it to protect him," Peter said sighing. "Prison scares him as much as going undercover right now…there is nothing I could do at this moment," he added.

"Well until you can talk to him again you should find some warm blankets and make up the couch… I mean how you could overlook the fact that Neal was going undercover and he would need you there to keep him from panicking." Elizabeth said sighing as she sat across the table from Peter.

As he sat there Peter sighed and tapped his pen on the notepad in front of him. "It was a judgment call… a poor judgment call but a judgment call none the less El, and I know what to use to get Neal to listen to me… it's the getting Neal to meet with me face to face that's going to be a problem, he told you all about last night, we slept together and I stupidly said that I loved him…" he admitted unsure if his wife knew the truth yet.

Elizabeth nodded her head a bit in agreement "I have to ask, did you mean it at all or was it a slip of the tongue?" She asked calmly waiting for an answer. Peter froze mid tap with his pen and looked at his wife that he loved. "I don't want to admit it but I think I do…when he said that when I told him we would only be CI and agent from now on it felt like his heart was being ripped out. I saw the pain on his face and I never meant to cause him such terrible pain. You didn't see him; no actor could ever repeat the look I saw. What's worse I don't even think Colin's torturing ever hurt him this deeply," Peter remarked as he dropped his pen on the notepad.

"I saw the aftereffects Peter; he was jumpy when strangers came around him, and if men said the word Baby he nearly lost it. You didn't know this, in the first two months after he came back if you left to get things from the office or go on a stakeout he would just start crying; he was afraid you wouldn't be coming home. Then when he found out Colin wasn't convicted he called me at work hysterical. That was the day I told you that I had to work later… he didn't want you to know how bad he was, he knew you would have him pulled from all cases 'till he was better. I went to June's and spent the whole day comforting him," she admitted.

Silence fell over the two for a moment "Well I'm getting him out of there soon; we're not learning anything about any smuggled art," Peter remarked as he grabbed his laptop and reopened the FBI link to his computer at the office. Elizabeth walked around the table and put her hands on Peter's shoulders.

"So is that the guy you're after? He looks familiar," Elizabeth remarked as she thought for a few minutes. "I remember him now his father was Randy Wilson the drug smuggler that was arrested six years ago," Elizabeth said noticing the lost look on her husband's face.

"Oh that's right you were so entranced with catching Neal that you were oblivious to everything else in the world. Randy Wilson was a drug smuggler that was arrested tried and convicted in a few short months, he died in prison a year later ago from a heart attack and his son threw a huge stink about it before moving overseas. He was a lot younger but that's his son."Elizabeth said filling Peter in on the details.

* * *

Running his hands through his hair Peter put his head back "Do you still have that collapsible baton I gave you last year for your birthday we may need it later on. If we can get into the club we have to get close to Neal and I need to apologize in person."Peter said as he pulled up a few things on the case.

As he read some things he heard his phones go off "Diana, I just found out some information on Wilson, I'll back in a little while… how's Neal doing?"Peter asked as he wrote a few notes down from the computer.

Diana paused for a moment "About that, it seems Wilson is a real piece of work, he told Neal that he uses a radio cell jammer when the club is open… we lost connection with Neal two minutes ago. Jones is walking around trying to see how far out the signal blocks but it looks like tonight we're in the dark until we can figure this out. There is not much else we can do tonight boss so you should just rest and come in tomorrow," Diana said with a defeated sigh.

Peter resisted the urge of throwing his phone at the wall at the thought of Neal flying solo at the club that night. "I'll be in early with coffee, and tell Jones to keep searching till he finds a weakness in that jammer's signal." Peter said before hanging up and putting his phone down on the table.

Elizabeth bit her lip as she felt the tension building in Peter's shoulders "What's wrong?" she asked as she started to kneed his muscles. "We hit a wall so to speak… there is a radio jammer in place that keeps us from hearing anything over the microphone Neal's wearing." He said giving a small sigh at the feeling of his muscles relaxing. Elizabeth grabbed Peter's phone and dialed a number.

"Yes I would like the number for…the Dragon's Den… could you please connect me… Thank you" Elizabeth said as she listened to the other line ring. "Hello, I'm trying to reach my son he works at the club and it seems that he left his phone at home it's a family emergency." Elizabeth said as she motioned for Peter to write Neal's alias down, Peter understood right away "Lark" he whispered as the bartender asked for the name. "His name is Lark, it's very important that I speak to him" Elizabeth added as she handed Peter the phone and left him alone to apologize to Neal.

"Let me transfer you to the VIP room," the woman said, after a moment Jordan picked up the phone "Yes… alright… Lark it's your mother some sort of emergency," Jordan said as he handed Neal the phone. Neal put on his best worried face as he put the phone against his ear. "Hey mom…what's wrong?" Neal asked as he moved a more private corner of the room and keeping his back to Jordan.

"Neal… its Peter, don't hang up… we have to talk," Peter said trying to keep the other man on the phone. "That's an even lower blow, using her to get me to answer the phone you knew I would pick up for Elizabeth… you broke up with me now leave me alone already," Neal said keeping his voice down before hanging up and going back to the couch.

He grabbed the "Plumbing problem she wanted me to go home and do the work myself but I explained that I had to work," Neal said as he picked at the lo-mein. "Tomorrow night I want to sing, I have the perfect song in mind that is if you don't mind me choosing," Neal remarked as he nibbled on a dumpling. Jordan smiled "You can choose whatever song you want, I expect after tomorrow night you're going to bring me a lot of money. Now before the club opens tomorrow we'll have to get everything set up and do sound check beforehand to make sure you sound perfect," Jordan remarked as he finished eating.

* * *

Elizabeth walked back into the room with a cup of tea in her hands "That was quick so did he forgive you?"She asked as she sat across from her husband. Peter put the phone down on the table. "He said it was a low blow using you to call him so we could talk. Neal's planning something I think he's going to tell me more in the morning when we can talk alone over more secure communication," Peter said as he rubbed his eyes and yawned.

"Come to bed it's getting late, like you said there isn't much more you can do now…" Elizabeth said with a yawn as she headed for the stairs and saw Peter still sitting at the table. "I thought I was stuck on the couch?" he asked quite confused at that point; with a smile Elizabeth walked back over to the table. "You made an attempt to apologize and Neal rejected it so it counts besides you look like you could use a good night's sleep and you won't get it on that thing," she added before heading upstairs.

Peter turned his laptop off before closing it and turning the lights off downstairs. _Jones and Diana have the night watch and until we can figure out this jammer we can't do much. Try and stay out of trouble Neal…for once._ Peter thought as he made sure the front door was locked before heading upstairs for the night. Walking slowly up the stairs Peter looked at the pictures that decorated the wall when he got to the top of the stairs he stopped and looked at the prints of Neal's undercover photo shoot. _ I still can't believe we framed these two and with Neal's blessing, then again these are the best motion shots of twirling that dumb hat of his. El just loved them…_ Peter thought as he pulled himself away from the pictures and walked into his bedroom. Satchmo nuzzled Peter's hand as the agent walked into the room. Changing into his sweatpants Peter slipped into bed and put his arm around Elizabeth.

* * *

"How long have you two been sleeping?" Peter said loudly waking Diana and Jones from their light slumber. "I brought coffee and breakfast so eat your fill," he said with a chuckle. Diana stretched her arms over her head "It better be some good coffee, oh Jones figured out that the signal doesn't seep out of the building which means if Neal can get outside onto his fire escape or just outside in general we'll be able to hear him. Also before he crashed for the day he told me to tell you that you are on the guest list under the names Peter and Elizabeth Larson… apparently he wants you there tonight," Diana said before walking out of the small bedroom turned surveillance room.

Peter walked over to the equipment and sat down as he saw Neal tossing and turning a bit in bed. After watching the younger man for a couple minutes he leaned closer to the microphone "Having trouble falling asleep?" he asked with a smirk. Neal groaned and sat up in bed his blanket falling off and revealing his bare chest. Not feeling tired anymore Neal walked over to the street side window and opened it and climbed out onto the fire escape to let the sun warm him. "I'm starting to miss the humdrum office life," Neal remarked as he put his head back against the brick wall of the building.

The FBI agent chuckled "I never thought I would hear the great Neal Caffrey say he misses being tied to a desk and doing paperwork, I hope that got recorded because I would love to play that for you over and over when you swear you never said it," Peter said as he watched Neal on the monitor as he relax in the sunlight. Neal laughed as he ran his hand through his hair, "don't worry I'll never forget I said it," Neal said as he yawned a bit.

Peter smiled "You need to get some sleep. Before you go though I have to ask why you want me to come into the club tonight?" he asked calmly. Neal smirked at the question "Oh that's my own little secret Peter; you'll just have to show up tonight as see for yourself and I think it will be better if I don't tell you. I'll see you and Elizabeth tonight then." Neal said as he climbed back in the window before shutting the window. However as he walked toward the bed he was interrupted by a knock on the door. Neal groaned softly and walked to the door and opened it revealing Jordan smirking at him. "I thought I would stop by before turning in for the day. I just wanted to say I can't wait to see what you do tonight for the show; I bet you'll really wow the crowd. Now I'll let you get some sleep, see you later Lark" Jordan said as he walked out the small room and down the hall to the elevator.

"Why do I always attract the crazy possessive ones?" Neal said to himself as he closed the door and climbed into bed. "Maybe because you flaunt yourself around like a sex god," Diana said through the ear piece with a chuckle. Rolling his eyes a bit Neal covered his head with the blanket and forced himself to fall asleep; "Good…night…Diana," he said in an joking annoyed tone as he rolled over trying to get comfortable on the bed that felt more like an oversized dog bed than a mattress.

Diana chuckled as she sipped her coffee and watched the amusing argument between Peter and Jones over who brought the better breakfast. As she glanced at the monitors that watched old woman walking by the club as they went to the Korean market on the corner. As the hours slowly passed by the agents prayed that something would happen before they died of boredom.

Jones sat by the monitors for his turn to watch the club as they played dumb games that Peter made them swear they would never tell Neal. "Pay up, it's a garbage truck," he said holding his hand out as they played a guess the engine game. Peter and Diana both pulled out twenties before handing them over. "Boss I'm starting to think that this was a bust… wait I could be wrong," Diana said as she sat up when she saw two large men entering Neal's room and block the window view on the monitor.

Peter moved over and watched the burly men moving around keeping Neal blocked from view. Neal woke when he heard the first loud bang "What are you doing in here?" Neal asked as he got to his feet. "Mr. Wilson wanted us to put a security system in we won't be long it seems there were some break-ins last night down the street," one man said as he walked over to the window that overlooked the alley and used a portable bolt gun to bolt the bars into the brick wall. "There you go; you now have four inch long bolts for protection," he remarked as he helped bolt the hinges for the diamond weaved protection door over the window before the other man closed the hinge and closed the lock before pocketing the key. Neal sat on the bed as he watched his only escape route being locked away.

Neal gave a weak smile to the men as they left the room, moving off his bed Neal walked over to the screen and gave it a couple tugs to test the lock at the bottom. "Here I am and nary a lock picking set to be found," Neal commented as he crouched down and looked at the key hole on the bottom of the lock. "How could you not think to bring a set of lock picking tools with you?" Diana asked in a mockingly shocked tone.

"Blame it on the team leader… all he said I had to do was go get hired, and play fly on the wall to this guy. He's the one who also and that I wouldn't have to do anything else," Neal said as he got up and dusted himself off. "Are you going to blame Peter for everything?" Diana asked before taking a sip of coffee, "he's not the consultant in this arrangement; he wouldn't know about any tools you might need...you should have thought of some of that yourself?" She added with a smirk.

Neal rolled his eyes "You know I didn't actually plan on being caged in a room that shouldn't even pass for a bedroom besides can't I make one mistake? I am human after all, not a song bird in a cage," Neal said as he pulled open a dresser drawer.

Diana grinned as if she were trying out for the role of the Cheshire cat "Are you actually admitting that the great Neal Caffrey alleged art thief and bond forger made a mistake?"She mocked in a tone that ruffled Neal's feathers. "Just tell Peter to bring the kit I left at his place in the guest room dresser under my socks next to the Armani wallet. I need to change now and get to practice… and tell Peter not to be late," Neal said as he dug through his drawers before finding a shirt and pulled it on over his head before finding the right pants and putting them on. "Enjoy watching my empty room," Neal said with a smirk as he left his room and made his way down to the club.

* * *

As he made his way into the club Neal removed his necklace and shoved it deep into his pocket before chatting with the others as he planned his performance. "We should try to practice at least once before tonight I want this to be perfect," Neal said as he took the fresh glass of wine from Angie.

Ty smirked "So you want this perfect, does that mean you're trying to impress someone?" he asked as he pushed his bangs out of his eyes. Neal lowered his glass without drinking "It's not really trying to impress anyone more than letting out repressed feelings of pain and anger really," Neal said as he sipped his wine. Jordan looked across the small sitting area and watched the undercover consultant. "Well this should be interesting to see what your music choice will be," Jordan said as he looked Neal over.

"It's hard to tell your intensions when you're dressed like that…one would think you're trying to rekindle a relationship when you're wearing an outfit like that," Mark commented as he finished off his beer. Neal gave a charming smile as he put the wine glass down and ran his fingers through his hair and looked down at his clothes. "So I'm wearing black jeans and a tee shirt what's wrong with that?" he asked as he stuck his leg out a bit and looked himself over once more. "Well I really need to rehearse and then shower to be ready for tonight, who knows I might indeed impress someone with my singing," Neal said as he got to his feet and made his way to the stage.

Neal took in a deep breath as the music started; he looked deep in himself to find the inspiration that made him choose the song; but when he finished the song he felt his nerves make him shiver that is until he heard the others clap. "Can I try that again I think I can do better, I was nervous before," Neal said wanting to be perfect. Jordan nodded his head and motioned for the music to be restarted.

Feeling more confident Neal waited for his cue and let out a richer more seductive but yearning sound than before and as he finished his second try Neal bit his lip in worry until he heard the others clapped so hard it sounded like their hands were going to fall off.

With a small bow he left the stage and walked back to group shaking a bit as his nerves caught up to him again. "So how was it this time?" Neal asked already knowing that it was a hit. Jordan nodded "I approve, the girls and I were talking and we think you should wear a different top, something that says sexy but modest at the same time," he said with a smirk. Neal gave a weak smile "I'm all for suggestions especially if it came from two very beautiful ladies such as yourselves, well I should go shower and get ready" Neal said with a smile as he headed for the elevator.

Jordan smirked as he got up and followed Neal into the elevator "I wanted to talk to you about adding to your show tonight, so after your shower could you please come up to my apartment I have something to give you, " Jordan said as the elevator rose up and stopped at Neal's floor. "I expect you to be at my door in thirty minutes and leave your hair wet," he ordered as the doors shut with a loud click.

* * *

Neal walked into his bedroom kicking off his shoes and began to strip as he walked to the small bathroom attached to the room. After slipping the ear piece out his ear and safely putting it on the edge of the sink before turning the water on and climbing under the flowing water and washing his hair and wash his body. _Tonight I'm going to be singing in front of perfect strangers... I can do this there is nothing to worry about after all Peter and Elizabeth will be there._ Neal thought as he finished up and got out of the shower and dressed in his pants and shirt before slipping his ear piece back in and putting his necklace back on so he wouldn't lose it. After dressing he left his room Neal made his way to the fourth floor; as he raised his hand to knock on the door, the door was ripped open.

"You're right on time; we need to get this done before you go on in three hours," Jordan said as he grabbed Neal by the arm and pulled him inside. "Now take off your pants and lie down on wooden table and don't say a word," he ordered as he pointed at the table, Neal looked at the table and noticed the young woman with a large case beside her. "What's she here for?" Neal asked as he slowly made his way to the table.

Jordan ignored the question until Neal was close enough for his guards to walk up behind Neal and for one of them to grab him around the waist and lift him into the air before bringing him over to the table and forcing him to lay down on it. "Hey get off me… let me go…" Neal yelled as he watched Jordan come over and grab his shirt and pull it off; and with an evil smirk Jordan reached down and easily pulled both his pants and boxers down exposing his hip and pelvis. and rip it off. "If you don't hold still I'll have him make you hold still," Jordan warned as the other man struggled against the guard. As Neal continued to struggle he began to flashback to when he had been branded by Colin. Knowing that his activation word was on the tip of his tongue Neal felt the woman jab him in the hip area with a needle causing him to lose his train of thought.

"Now please don't worry, I've done this a hundred times. I'll be done in an hour so just relax… I've given you a local so you won't feel a thing so just lie as still as you can," the woman said as she got her needle ready. Neal tilted his head back and looked at Jordan as he as he motion for the other guard to lift both his arms over his head and keep his wrists pinned to the table as the other guard held his legs down. "You can't do this, you can't force someone to get a tattoo if they don't want it," Neal said as he tried to pull his wrists free with little success. Jordan chuckled a bit "You really should read your contract more carefully it states that I can mark in any way I like to show ownership, and since you signed the contract voluntarily you missed the part where you signed away your right to say no to this." Jordan said with a smirk as he rubbed his thumb against the underside of Neal's wrist a bit to calm him down.

After a few minutes Neal realized it was a lost cause and gave up struggling altogether and allowing the young tattoo artist to begin, it took all his willpower to not let out the smallest chuckle as the vibrations from the needle tickled his side. Jordan smirked as he watched the dragon tattoo come to life on Neal's pelvis and crawled up his hip. "It's perfect, you do the best work Kat… and for doing this on such short notice I will double your payment," Jordan said as he began to play with Neal's hair. Neal turned his head away and closed his eyes tightly to keep his eyes from showing his pain. _Peter and the others must have heard everything, but they haven't said a word to me yet… could there be another jammer in here…_ Neal thought as he controlled his breathing. As the minutes ticked by; Neal kept himself immobile by counting the pulses of the needle that was jabbing ink under his skin. When she finished the tattoo artist wiped away the remaining blood off Neal's new tat and smiled at him. "There we go honey all done and might I say you really have the body for this tattoo," she said as she dropped the used needle into the cleaning solution she had on the table. Groaning softly Neal sat up as his arms and legs were let go, walking around the small area to loosen his tightened muscles in his legs he passed by a mirror and stopped when he caught sight of the tattoo that looked like it would come alive any second.

Jordan walked up behind Neal and smirked at him "You look amazing… now I think to show this tattoo off you should wear this," Jordan said as he produced a black mid drift from behind his back and holding it over Neal's bare chest. "It's just high enough to show your new ink off…and remember you have no choice in the matter now put it on and go back to your room," Jordan ordered as he smirked as Neal took the shirt and slipped it on over his head.

Neal didn't look behind him as he left the lavish apartment he heard the crackle of the ear piece. "Neal there you are, where the hell have you been for the last hour?" Diana yelled "We were about to storm the place, Peter told us to wait since he knew that if something was wrong you would have let us known… so where have you been?" Neal gave a small chuckle and ran his hand over his tattoo. "I was in Jordan's apartment… apparently there was a radio jammer activated up there; we were talking about my going on stage tonight," Neal said calmly as he walked into his bedroom and sat on the end of his bed.

* * *

Elizabeth smiled at Peter "You look very nice honey, now do you have Neal's tool kit?" Elizabeth asked as they got out of the car. Peter held it up before shoving it into his back pocket as they walked from the parking lot and up to the bouncer "Peter and Elizabeth Larson," Peter said as he put his arm around his wife's waist. After a quick check of the list the bouncer pulled open the door for them and let them into the club. As they made their way through the club to a small table that gave them the perfect view of the stage, Elizabeth looked around the club. "What a combination of Asian themed and modern club, it's very nice here," she said looking around in interest as a party planner. Soon the house lights began to dim so the only light on the stage was a spot light on Jordan as he stood at the microphone.

"Alright welcome to the Dragon's den, now usually we open with the very sexy stylings of Angie and Greta but tonight we have a treat for everyone. I would like everyone to welcome our newest addition, Lark," Jordan said as he stepped back to let Neal walk through the curtain held open by the two women. Neal walked up to the microphone in a pair of black ripped jeans the black mid drift shirt revealing his tattoo and bare feet but before speaking he scanned the crowd 'til he saw Peter and Elizabeth. "I've decided to open with a dedication to someone special. I'm sure that the song will speak for itself," Neal said as Jordan, Angie and Greta left the stage and retreated to the VIP area.

With a small motion to Ty behind the DJ booth the opening music began and when it got to the mark Neal began to sing on cue with his rich seductive tone again. Ty sat ready waiting for his part as the backup singer since his voice fit so well with Neal's.

The world was on fire, no-one could save me but you

It's strange what desire will make foolish people do

And I'd never dreamed that I'd meet somebody like you

And I'd never dreamed that I'd need somebody like you.

No, I wanna fall in love

(This world is only gonna break your heart)

And, I wanna fall in love

(This world is only gonna break your heart)

…with you

What a wicked game to play

To make me feel this way

What a wicked thing to do

To let me dream of you

What a wicked thing to say

You never felt this way

What a wicked thing you do

To make me dream of you

And I wanna fall in love

(This world is always gonna break your heart)

No, I wanna fall in love

(This world is always gonna break your heart)

...with you

The world was on fire, no-one could save me but you

It's strange what desire will make foolish people do

No, and I never dreamed that I'd love somebody like you

And I'd never dream that I lose somebody like you,

No

And I wanna fall in love

(This world is always gonna break your heart)

But I wanna fall in love

(This world is always gonna break your heart)

...with you my love

And nobody… loves no…one...

When the song was over the crowd roared with applause and whistles, Neal smiled and gave a couple small waves and nod as Jordan walked up clapping "That was just amazing for an opening, now we're going to hand the music over to our resident DJ Ty for the next two hours so enjoy the night and don't stop partying," Jordan said as he motioned for the lights to change and the dance music to start. Soon the club was filled with flashing lights and techno music. Neal left the stage with Jordan before excusing himself to get a drink from the bar when he was free from Jordan he made his way through the thick of the crowd earning himself a few gropes from both men and women until he was safe on the other side of the club where Elizabeth and Peter were still sitting.

Peter locked eyes with Neal as he walked over to the table and let Elizabeth hug the younger man first and congratulate him on the song. Neal looked at the other man. "Did you like it too Peter?" Neal asked as he slowly pulled himself out of Elizabeth's embrace. Peter nodded and then said quietly, "Neal I'm so sorry….I never meant to hurt you and I know I should have explained clearer instead of doing it the way I did. I do care for you; I always have even when I was chasing you I didn't want to see you hurt and then here I go and do what I told I wouldn't do…I pushed you away when you needed me the most going undercover. Neal, can you ever forgive me?" Peter asked tenderly as he watched his friend closely. Neal gave a real smile from deep down; there was nothing fake behind it. Moving closer he put his arms around Peter and hugged him as if he would hug a friend since he knew Peter would like some dignity and he respected it. He nearly jumped when he felt one of the agent's hands slide down his back and over his lower backside.

"Peter… someone might see us I thought you wanted…wait," Neal stopped and put his hand on his back pocket and felt his tool kit there. "You're really getting good at that; I rubbing off on you it seems, I wonder if that's a good thing or not," Neal said with a smirk as he pulled away and turned around only to come face to face with Jordan and before he could open his mouth to explain Jordan's hand came out of nowhere and slapped him hard. It took all of Neal's strength to keep Peter behind him and from breaking his cover or breaking the other man's face. "Jordan its okay it was just a hug…from my parents… "Neal lied hoping that Jordan would believe his lie. The younger man looked the couple over then looked Neal over "Adopted right?" He asked looking at Elizabeth trying to catch her off guard

Elizabeth smiled a winning smile. "Yes at sixteen; he was a hell raiser but he buckled down quickly, is there anything else you would like to know before my husband rips your head off for assaulting our son," she said in a mother bear protecting her cub tone of voice causing Jordan to take a step back. "No, Lark we've got a party set up in the VIP area for you so don't take too long," he said before backing away into the crowd when he dropped his fearful look and pushed his way through the crowd 'til he reached the VIP area where the others were relaxing and drinking.

Neal looked at Elizabeth with a smile and hugged her again before going back to Peter and hugging him again only this time he didn't care who was watching as he seemed to mold himself perfectly against Peter's body. "There's a shipment due to come in at noon in two days, that's all I saw on the receipt when I was in Jordan's office to add your names to the guest list," Neal whispered in Peter's ear. "I'll talk to you in the morning" he added before taking off already missing the heat of Peter's body, as Neal walked away into the crowd to let Elizabeth and Peter enjoy the club a bit.

* * *

Not looking behind him as he walked through the crowds Neal made his way into the VIP area where the others were waiting "You guys didn't really have to do this for me all I did was sing a song on a stage it's not that important," Neal said trying to act modest as he was handed a glass of champagne in a proper glass "To Lark, who's going to bring us thousands of dollars every night until we're swimming in cash," Jordan said as everyone agreed with him. Neal gave a weak smile as he held his glass up with the others and before downing it before putting his glass down. As he looked out at the club Neal watched Peter and Elizabeth wishing he could be with them and leave the club with them. He sighed softly and leaned against the low well and rubbed his forehead as he watched everyone dance. Soon he felt a headache start to attack behind his eyes. Jordan walked over and held a small tablet out to Neal. "Here this will help with your headache, just let it dissolve under your tongue and when it's all gone everything will be much better," Jordan said as he held the tablet out and waited for Neal to open his mouth and lift his tongue.

Neal looked at the small white tablet in his hand before opening his mouth, lifting his tongue up and putting it in his mouth; he knew that he would be forced to take the tablet in the end even if he had resisted. Jordan sat Neal down on the couch and let him put his head back. "You'll start to feel better soon I promise," Jordan said as he began to play with Neal's hair. "How about we go upstairs before the medicine kicks in," Jordan suggested as he put his arm around Neal's waist and helped him to his feet. Giving an involuntary moan Neal felt his face flush a bit at the sound as he was helped to the elevator. "Looks like it took effect a bit quicker than I imagined… I bet you feel much better now," Jordan said as he pulled Neal closer; his hand spread open over Neal's back under his shirt as they got into the elevator and rode it to the fourth floor. Neal knew he should feel repulsed at the touch but he felt his body craved more. When Jordan looked at him he glared as best he could.

"I can see that you don't want me touching you but at the same time you can't bring yourself to tell me to stop. You're more disgusted at yourself for wanting me to touch you isn't that right?"Jordan asked with a smirk as he ran his hand up Neal's bare skin earning him a gasping moan. Jordan chuckled as the doors opened on his private floor. Neal felt his body temperature rising as he was led back into the lavish apartment and into Jordan's bedroom.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own white collar sadly, if I did there would be more naked Neal scenes and more bromance between peter and neal and now onto chapter six

Warning: mentions of rape and poor poor Neal gets hurt yet again, tear jerker ahead so be warned and get your tissues ready.

**Chapter 6: The Crimson Dragon**

Peter yawned as he walked into Hughes' office at eight the next morning; he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes as he joined the senior officer in his office. "Peter thanks for coming, I hate to tell you this but you, Jones and Barrigan being pulled from the case. It seems that the art smuggling isn't the big fish in this case it's what's inside that counts. Peter I want you to meet Jack Lawson…DEA," Hughes said motioning over to the other man standing in the corner of the office. Peter turned around to look at the other man and right away his gut told him that he was going to cause more trouble than Neal did on a daily basis. "DEA huh… that means drugs, you think that Jordan Wilson is smuggling drugs inside the statues," Peter said already figuring out the reason for Jack's arrival.

"It's nice to meet you, Burke. I've been trying for years to get someone undercover in that club and you got someone in Wilson's place in a day. Now I've been talking to Hughes and as of six a.m. this morning Caffrey belongs to me. I was able to get the DOJ to sign off on it, it's so much easier than trying to get my own man in there. Now I'll allow you and your team to stick around, I've heard that your little pet con will only do tricks for you… so incase he doesn't listen, you'll need to convince him to actually do the work and not goof off," Jack said as he held up a paper flower that he had gotten from Neal's desk. Peter grabbed the flower and looked at it for a moment. "It's true Neal goofs off here at the office but when he's undercover he's very determined to get the job done. And sir I have to disagree on this matter Neal shouldn't be forced to stay any longer. It's quickly turning into another Traux situation sir," Peter said hoping that he could spare Neal anymore time in the club.

Hughes folded his hands in front of his mouth as he thought before sitting up straighter. "Peter I want you to keep an eye on Caffrey, if he gives his the word get him out of there I don't care how you do but just do it Peter," Hughes ordered as he waved the men out of his office. Peter walked out keeping the flower in his hand as he walked into his office closely followed by the other agent. Jack stood in the doorway and looked at Peter "What's a Traux situation?" he asked leaning against the door.

Taking in a deep breath Peter contemplated telling the other man before opening his mouth. "About nine almost ten months ago Neal was working undercover at a modeling studio, after a day there an email was sent to the woman we were investigating. The email had outed Neal as our consultant and he was sold into slavery to a man in Italy named Colin Traux who beat, starved and branded Neal like an animal. The aftermath was a horrible sight when I found him again he was brainwashed into thinking that no one would be coming for him, even after so much time has passed Neal still isn't back at hundred percent, he still hides behind a fake smile a lot more than before," Peter said as he put the flower down on his desk and grabbed a file folder.

Jack looked at the paper flower once more "What's the deal with the origami flower anyway I found his desk littered with those and sketches of some girl. Peter smiled "Neal gets bored when I ask him to do mortgage fraud cases so he passes the time by folding these flowers or sketching in his drawing pad. The girl he draws is Kate, the girl he broke out of prison for, she died in a plane explosion, he still pines for her every once in a while. Fortunately it's not as bad as it used to be. There were days when he would just sit there oblivious to the world, you could yell at him until you had gone hoarse and he wouldn't have even blinked," Peter said as he ushered Jack out of the office and walked with him to the elevator.

* * *

Neal groaned as he opened his eyes, his body felt weak as he tried to sit up his back screaming in pain as he managed to push himself into a seated position for only a few seconds before falling forward into a pair of strong arms. "Whoa, not so fast… you need to rest some more before attempting to get out of bed," Jordan said as he helped Neal lay back down. "I think you're the first person I ever met who threw their back out during sex…then again I was pretty rough with you not that you complained much," Jordan added with a playful smack to Neal's buttocks earning him a cry of pain. Neal turned his head and glared at him. "That's because you drugged me and I'm not going to forget that," Neal interjected before Jordan could open his mouth. Neal sighed as he lay back down on his stomach and began to play with his necklace a little as he watched Jordan walk out of view.

_I can't hear anything through the ear piece…which means the signal is still jammed,_ Neal thought as he dropped his necklace and folded his arms on his pillow before another back spasm hit. Groaning loudly Neal reached back and rubbed his back as best he could till the pain subsided.

When the most recent back spasm passed Neal forced himself back up and got dressed in his black jeans, patting the back pocket to make sure his tool kit was still there. He left the mid drift on the floor and made his way out of the bedroom and into the living room of the apartment. _He must have gone downstairs to make sure the club is closed up,_ Neal thought as he slowly made his way out of the apartment and got into the elevator and when it got to his floor he slowly made his way down the short hallway to his room. After making it inside and closing the door Neal started to break down before he even made it to the bed. Neal ignored his back and crawled into bed so he was lying on his stomach again and began to let out his pain in a mixture of screams and sobs.

"Nice to finally put face to the name so to speak," Jack said as he watched Neal through the closed circuit monitor. Neal reached behind his neck and undid the necklace pulling it completely off to put it on the night stand beside him. "Who are you and what do you want?" Neal asked sharply as he tried to wipe away his tears. "Right, I'm agent Jack Lawson of the DEA; I've taken over this investigation so you'll be answering to me now. So as of today I own you, and I'm not as forgiving as Burke so if you screw me over your ass is back in prison and not the comfy super max you're used to but general population at the roughest prison I can think of where bending over in the shower will be the least of your worries you little slut," Jack hissed into the microphone.

Neal felt a wave of shame hit him as he lay on his bed feeling dirty in his own skin. "Now that I have you're undivided attention I have one more thing to say, next time you go undercover you shouldn't talk about your personal life with Burke over FBI equipment. I listened to a few interesting conversations on the recordings from the other day… now if you want him to keep his job and keep yourself out of prison you will do as I say and show me respect and address me as Agent Lawson or Sir is that clear ?" Jack asked with a smirk. "Yes sir…" Neal whispered as he reached under his pillow and wrapped his fingers around his cell phone. "Good boy, now if you give Burke any indication that you want to leave I'll ruin him… you'll be done with job when I tell you. Now since the club is closed and you're supposed to be resting so go to sleep, you look like hell," Jack ordered as he switched the microphone off and reclined back in his chair.

Peter walked into the room with two cups of coffee. "It can get pretty boring during the day," Peter said as he handed a cup of coffee over to Jack. "Yeah I figured that after a few minutes, and by the way I met Caffrey before he knocked off for the day; he's a good kid once you put down some ground rules," Jack lied as motioned to the monitor where Neal could be barely seen through the locked protection screen. Peter watched Neal and he could instantly see from his body language that he was upset about something but he couldn't figure out what was wrong. "What kind of rules did you give him?" Peter asked as he sipped his coffee. Jack chuckled and tried his coffee "This is good coffee, and I told him he should either address me as Agent Lawson or Sir that's all, I like everyone showing me respect even if I'm working with them for one job," Jack said as he sipped more coffee.

As he watched Neal rest Peter was also watching Jack out of the corner of his eye "Well I'll leave you to your work I have to go find something to do," Peter said before walking out of the small bedroom to where Diana and Jones were talking quietly over a laptop. "Hey boss what's wrong?" Diana asked as she looked at Peter. "I've got a bad feeling about something, I'm not sure what's going to happen but I know it's going to happen. What did you find out about Lawson?" Peter asked as he took as seat and looked at the computer screen.

Diana sighed "About that, he's clean and I mean squeaky not even a parking ticket; it's all pretty clean cut maybe even a bit too clean cut if you know what I mean. I'll keep looking but he seems clean," she added as she sat back on the old couch. Peter sat down on the empty fold up chair, pulling out his cell phone Peter dialed Neal's number and waited as it began to ring.

* * *

Groaning at the feeling of his phone vibrating in his hand Neal opened his eyes and propped himself up on his elbows before pulling his phone out from under his pillow. When he saw that the caller ID read Peter's number, Neal opened the phone and put the phone up to his ear "Peter…it's nice to hear your voice again…" Neal said as he looked at the necklace on the nightstand. Reaching over with one hand he grabbed the necklace and stuffed it under his pillow. Peter could hear something in Neal's voice though he wasn't sure what it was. "I just called to see how you were doing and if you wanted to talk at all, just the two of us; I've missed talking to you," Peter said trying to ferret out Neal's problem. Neal felt more ashamed as he thought back to the night before; whenever he closed his eyes he could feel Jordan's hands running over his body again. The thought of being touched and violated by Jordan again made Neal feel sick, forcing him to bolt into the bathroom and as he threw himself in front of the toilet he dropped his phone with a clatter as he became ill.

Listening over the phone Peter felt his anger and worry build that his partner had become ill so fast, when he was sure Neal had stopped throwing up he spoke again. "Neal I'm still here, are you alright?" Peter asked truly worried that he couldn't comfort the other man. Neal grabbed his phone before grabbing the edge of the sink he pulled himself up from the floor. As he looked at himself in the mirror the ex con put his phone to his ear and tried to control his shaking before speaking. Still racked with a few shakes Neal lowered his gaze to the cold porcelain sink. "Peter…I want to…" Neal stopped when he remembered Jack's threat; biting his lip a bit Neal gathered his courage as another shiver shook his body.

"I wanted to tell you about last night…after the concert… I should have been smarter… Jordan gave me something for my headache and the next thing I knew I was in bed with him…I didn't want to sleep with him but at the same time I couldn't pull away from him… no that's not right, I didn't want to pull away from him. I remember ever whisper and every single touch. You must be disgusted that I didn't even try to fight back," Neal said softly as he leaned against the cool tile of the bathroom wall.

Moving out of ear shot of the others Peter closed the kitchen door behind him and sat down at the small table. "Neal...did Jordan rape you last night?"Peter asked quietly as he desperately tried to hide his anger at Jordan so as not to spook his partner. _If he touched Neal I'll kill him…_ Peter thought as he used all his willpower to reign in his anger.

"Yes," cried Neal as he broke off sobbing and wishing Peter was there to hold him and tell him that would be alright. Neal ignored his back pain as he curled up against himself in the corner of the bathroom.

"Neal you were drugged and that prevented you from fighting back...this wasn't your fault so how can I feel disgusted," replied Peter as he felt his anger grow. "I'm coming over and I'm going to take you out of there" he added a minute later. _I'll plead insanity after I empty my entire gun into his head…_ Peter growled in his mind.

Freezing at Peter's words Neal shook his head "No...I can handle it...I've got a job to complete," lied Neal as he remembered Jack's threat, even though he wanted nothing more than to be comforted by Peter at the moment. _Peter may not be disgusted with me but I'm disgusted at myself for taking something from him and thinking it was safe…_ Neal thought as he thought back to the night before. "Peter what do you know about this Jack Lawson guy?" Neal asked ignoring all formality he was told to give.

Peter sat back in his seat ready to question Neal about his one-eighty attitude change when the kitchen door opened. He quickly covered his call hoping that Neal would get his hidden message. "I'm sure it's fine El, you'll be able to get Jackson Room access for your clients. I know…I'll have to call you back El… I love you too," Peter said before hanging up and pocketing his cell phone. Neal pulled his phone away from his ear and looked at it _Peter put a lot of emphasis on Jackson Room…now if it were Jones or Diana he wouldn't have said anything but he hid that was talking to me for a reason…something to do with Jackson Room. Wait… Jackson Room broken down and pronounced slower is Jack's in room._ "That's pretty clever, for a fed," Neal said to himself with a small smile as he decided to brush his teeth to get rid of the taste in his mouth.

* * *

As he walked out of the small bathroom Neal pocketed his phone not noticing someone standing in front of him until he walked into him. "I was wondering where you ran off to, so who were you talking to on the phone?" Jordan asked as he reached around and put a hand on Neal's lower back and pulled him close. Neal cringed at the touch. "Don't touch me… and it's none of your business who I was talking to," Neal said as he pulled away and moved toward his bed only to find the bed frame gone and the mattress stripped of its sheets and laying on the floor.

Jordan smirked "I've decided that if you want to stay in here that I would make it less than pleasurable so you will want to stay in my room with me," he said as he watched the other man walk away from him. "I'm sure after a couple days like this you'll be begging me to take you to my room again. Now you should get some rest before tonight for your next show. If you do as well as you did last night I'll reward you again just the way you like it," Jordan said as he walked up behind Neal and put his hands on Neal's shoulders. "We can even try it without the drugs; I'm sure it can still be fun. In fact, why don't we have a little test run right now?" Jordan offered with a smirk as he slid his hand down Neal's arm while as he pulled him toward the bed.

Neal pulled away from Jordan, grabbing the lamp from the table and putting all his strength behind his swing as he struck Jordan in the head. Standing over the man Neal prodded the seemingly unconscious man with his foot before taking a step away from him. Dropping the lamp on the floor Neal walked toward the window. _I should have just told Peter I wanted out and we could have dealt with Jack on our own, All I to do was steal the tapes and give them to Mozzie erase the damning evidence and I could put the tapes back before Peter even knew they were missing and with no evidence Jack wouldn't be able to ruin Peter's career, I've done it once before and that was from a federal judge… _Neal thought as he reached for his cell phone.

Moving from the floor Jordan ignored his throbbing head as he grabbed the other man by the arm and threw him to the floor. "You have a lot of nerve trying that and I think you need to learn your place," he said as he straddled Neal's hips and put his hands on Neal's throat and kept his head against the floor. Faced with the threat of losing consciousness Neal fought with fury to get the upper hand when he heard Jack in his earpiece. "If you screw up this case Caffrey I will personally beat you black and blue...now apologize and submit...remember Burke's career is in your hands!"Jack smirked as he watched the monitor as if he were enjoying a TV show.

Neal lowered his hands from Jordan's face and stopped struggling. "I knew you would lean your place." Jordan said as he ran his hand down Neal's chest a bit "Now I'm going to get up and you're going to lie still until I leave the room then you can get up do you understand…nod if you understand," Jordan ordered. Nodding his head Neal lay still as the other man climbed off him and walked toward the door. "Now I don't want my favorite songbird to fly away so I've had the lock changed on your door so it can only be opened from the outside. I'll be back to let you out for dinner tonight," Jordan said as he walked out of the room and closed the door behind him.

_I'm trapped in here and if I try to escape Jack will ruin Peter,_ Neal thought as he covered his eyes with his hands and tried to will the tears away that threatened to fall. After a couple minutes Neal uncovered his eyes and looked over at his new set up. "I really feel at home now…"he mumbled sarcastically as he got to his feet and walked around the small bedroom a few times 'til he became dizzy. Going over to the mattress that was now his bed Neal sat down on the edge and fell back against the pillow. When his head fell against the pillow he had felt something there. Reaching behind his head he grabbed the necklace that had been left on his pillow. "Looks like I can't get away…" Neal said as he looked at the faux jade stone necklace.

Jack chuckled "It's still a little too perfect for you Caffrey; it's a little too big for you; it needs to be smaller and no windows…" Jack said grabbing the soda off the table before cracking it open. "Remember if you do anything that even strays from your original orders or draw attention to yourself in anyway Burke will not only be out of the job but I'll see to it that his wife's business goes under faster than the Titanic," Jack warned as he put the can back down.

"Leave Elizabeth out of this, she has nothing to do with this," Neal said as he resisted the urge to throw the necklace across the room. "If Peter heard you talk about his wife like that he would punch you," Neal remarked with a chuckle. "I would like to see him try; all I have to say to my superiors is that Burke Premiere Events seems to be a perfect front to run drugs. That and plant a few kilos of coke in the backroom will and it will ruin her forever and I'll blame it all on you Caffrey," Jack said unaware that Peter had walked into the room and had heard his whole side of the conversation.

Peter tightened his hand into a fist as he stood behind Jack, taking in a deep breath to keep himself from pulling his gun out and shooting the man in the head. Clearing his throat Peter stood there as Jack turned around. "Burke…how long you been standing there buddy?" Jack asked as he saw Peter's face written with anger. "Oh long enough…"Peter remarked as he slowly unclenched his hands. Jack stood up and walked over to the other agent, "You don't look too happy so what's bugging you?" Jack asked with a smirk. "I saw that Neal's bedding has changed is there a reason that you decided not to tell me?" Peter asked as he tried to keep from punching the other man.

"Burke this is my case...I don't have to tell you anything but seeing how he's your pet con I tell you what I know, when I came back from the kitchen Wilson was on top of your con and they were arguing about something but I couldn't hear what was said since Caffrey took the microphone off and it was too far away to be recorded. When you talk to him again could you remind him to wear the necklace, it's the only way to keep accurate records for others to hear later at trials and hearings," Jack said as opened the door for Peter. "Now if you'll excuse me agent Burke I have to watch this club… why don't go on an early lunch run for us, you know what your team likes, I'll have ham on rye with mustard…better yet I'll get my own food when you get back with your team's, I don't really trust you won't do something to it just because I took this case away from you," Jack remarked as he motioned for Peter to get out of the room.

* * *

Still reeling with anger Peter walked out of the room and made a beeline for Diana and pulled her aside "Lawson's dirty I mean really dirty I just walked in on him threatening to put coke in the storeroom of Elizabeth's office and then tell his superiors about it, now we know why no one has ever complained about him they're too afraid to say anything for fear that he'll go through with his blackmail. This might not be his only threat to Neal. He's been in there for a while and before when I was talking to Neal and I said I would go get him, Neal insisted that he could finish the job; almost like he's scared to quit early. I'm going to try and talk to him again and find out what's going on. I want you and Jones to keep looking for something concrete," Peter said as he grabbed his phone and started to dial Neal's number again and listened to it ring.

Neal looked at the caller ID before answering "I guess you really missed me to call me again," Neal remarked with a small smile as he felt better whenever he heard Peter's voice. In fact earlier he had actually craved hearing the other man's voice. "Neal… I know about the threat I walked in on him threatening you with ruining El's career…now Neal has he threatened you before?" Peter asked calmly as he leaned against the wall as the adrenaline in his body began to wane. Biting his lip hard the ex con contemplated what would happen if he told Peter the truth. "He hasn't said anything else to me that was the first time he spoke to me like that," Neal lied as he twirled the necklace over his face. Right away Peter could tell that Neal wasn't being honest with him, sighing softly Peter closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose hard. "Neal I'm not going to get mad; so just tell me," Peter requested softly ignoring the looks from Jones and Diana.

"All I can say Peter is that when this is over we need to have a long talk over beer and wine… and you know that you're the only one I trust and I hope you trust me just as much," Neal said knowing that his message was cryptic but he couldn't go into detail. "Tomorrow that shipment comes in at noon and hopefully this job will be over and I can go back to my normal life," he added with a small smile. Peter smirked a bit and cleared his throat so that the other agents would go back to what they were doing. "Let's hope everything goes well and try to stay out of trouble Neal… " he said as he felt something in his gut that wasn't sitting well with him.

With a small smirk Neal sat up on the bare mattress. "You know Peter trouble just seems to find me I don't go looking for it," Neal defended "I feel safer talking with you Peter… I should get some sleep though I'm starting to get tired and knowing this bed I probably won't get too much sleep," he added patting the mattress a bit. Peter nodded in agreement. "Call me when you wake up, and get as much rest as you can Neal," Peter said before hanging up.

Giving a weak smile Neal put his phone down and sighed as he fell back against the pillow and tried to fall asleep._ I could have told Peter about the first time Jack threatened me but if Peter reacted in front of him he would deny it and probably call me a liar and ruin Peter as soon as he could,_ Neal thought as he rolled onto his side and sighed at the feeling practically lying on the floor. After ten minutes of tossing and turn the ex con rubbed his eyes and tried to force himself to sleep.

* * *

Jordan knocked on Neal's door before unlocking it and walking in and seeing Neal sound asleep on his left side with his cell phone clutched in his hand and his right arm draped over the dragon tattoo on his hip. "Lark…it's time for dinner you should get up before it gets cold," Jordan said as he crouched down and put a hand on Neal's shoulder. Neal rolled away from the touch "I'm not hungry," Neal mumbled as he kept his back to Jordan, as he closed his eyes again he heard his stomach growl.

"You sure sound hungry, and I have something special for you so you should get up before it gets cold…er," Jordan said with a smirk as he held something under Neal's nose causing the other man to recoil away from the smell and fall off the mattress at Jordan's feet. Neal sat up and wrinkled his nose a few times to get the smell out before he looked up at the other man. "What was that?" he asked as he took to covering his nose as he dropped his phone on the bed and grabbed the can out of Jordan's hand and looked at the label. The blue and white label gave no hint to the contents; Neal looked at the writing and read the Japanese letters. "Canned Eel, you're expecting me to eat this?" Neal asked as he was ready to throw the can aside and suffer not eating that night.

With a loud laugh Jordan crouched down "Well you could eat that or you could join be upstairs for dinner for a feast of sorts there is going to be fine dining and wine just for the two of us and I promise nothing has been drugged; I wouldn't eat the same food as you if it was," Jordan remarked. "If you don't come with me I'll either have him hold you down and I'll force you to eat this whole thing or you can starve," Jordan said with a smirk as he got up and started to walk toward the door where one of his guards was waiting.

Neal put his hand over his phone and closed his fingers to keep it safe in his hand it was the only lifeline he trusted. "I'll starve thank you very much, so you can go now," Neal spat as he looked out the window and sighed. Jordan walked back into the room and stood over Neal "Fine then, you'll just have to sing on an empty stomach later it doesn't bother me," he remarked as he looked Neal over. "I'm not singing tonight or any other night ever again. I'm going to pack my things and leave and there is nothing you can do about it. I'm not your slave I have the right to leave when I want," Neal said as he looked Jordan in the eye with determination.

"No not really...you really must read contracts closer before you sign them because that contract that you signed pretty much gives me ultimate control over your every movement. You belong to me now and if you try anything I assure you that you will regret it greatly," Jordan said as he put his hand on the back of Neal's neck and forced him to up onto his knees. "Good birds stay in their cage or they could end up getting hurt," Jordan warned as pulled Neal into a rough bruising kiss. Neal pushed the other man away and wiped his mouth off. "Don't you dare touch me like that again," Neal warned as he kept his eyes on Jordan to watch for any sudden movements.

Smirking at Neal's reaction Jordan looked at his guard. "Take the mattress out, leave the pillow behind…now I know that taking the mattress won't be enough so I'll be taking your phone as well. Now hand it over and you won't have to get hurt Lark," Jordan said as he approached Neal with his hand out. Backing up to the corner of the room Neal wished that he had taken some type of self defense class when he was younger when it dawned on Neal that his brother and Dante had indeed taught him all he needed to know. Shoving his phone into his pocket Neal raised his hands to protect his face as he got into position.

Jordan laughed softly "How cute, you actually think you could take me?" he asked as he waved his guard back to the door and he put his hands in his pockets as he walked forward towards the cornered consultant. Neal took a swing at Jordan and watched as Jordan dodged the blow and grabbed Neal by the wrist and twisted him around so he was pinned against the wall his arm twisted behind his back. "Now if you don't want your wing broken my songbird you're going to join me for dinner upstairs, do you understand?" Jordan ordered.

"Fine I'll go with you on one condition, I want someone else to taste the food before I eat anything if they don't pass out then I'll eat dinner with you but if you say no then I'll just sit here and starve," Neal said keeping his face emotionless. Jordan shrugged his shoulders "Fine, let's just hurry up before the food gets cold," he said as he took Neal by the hand when he got up and walked over and pulled him out the door and shoving the opened canned eel into his guard's hands "dispose of that it's starting to stink the place up," he commented as he dragged Neal to the stairs and pulled him roughly behind him up to the fourth floor.

As they entered Neal patted his pocket to make sure his phone was still there as he let himself be dragged into the wolf's den as if he were a helpless lamb. _I think this is the first time I ever answered with my stomach but I was so hungry I just couldn't take it and I folded for wine and fine dining…but I didn't hear anything from good ole Jack which means he approves or he's off making Diana and Jones life a living hell…_ Neal thought as he was led to a chair at the medium sized table.

* * *

After dinner was served Jordan uncorked the wine and tossed the cork over to Neal. Catching the cork before it hit the table Neal spun it over his fingers a couple times before sniffing the stained side. "It's a very interesting bouquet; there is also a hint of some spices that blend very well with the base fragrance of the wine," Neal said letting his real self out a bit as he put the cork down on the table. Jordan smirked as he walked around the table and poured Neal a drink. "Now this is nice and I hope we can both get along better. I do hope that you have changed your mind about staying with me. I mean you've changed your mind about leaving so suddenly was it seeing your parents last night or have you been talking to your ex that's done it?" Jordan said as he walked back to his seat.

Neal picked up his glass and looked at the wine for a moment before sipping it. "I have been speaking to him, and we made up and but it is the way I've been treated by you or have you forgotten about last night already you drugged and raped me. So the answer is of course I'm going to go home to my family and lover," Neal said as he put his glass down. Jordan held the bottle in his hand for a moment before putting it down on the table. "I see…well four days is a little quick to be taking him back after he dumped you. Are you even sure he really loves you maybe he just misses the sex," Jordan said with a smirk as he finally poured himself a glass of wine and began to drink it as one worker tasted all the food in front of Neal. Looking at Jordan Neal sat back in his seat and pushed his hair out of his eyes.

"It's not just the sex, he respects me for who I am and he'll be here to pick me up sometime tomorrow afternoon, so consider this my two week notice, only ten hours before I leave. So I guess since the food has been tested and no one has passed out I guess it's safe to eat," Neal remarked as he picked up his fork and began to eat. "So what makes your ex so special that you crawl back to him after he dumped you?" Jordan asked. As he finished chewing Neal drank some wine before speaking. "First of all I'm not crawling back to him, he apologized and I forgave him, and to answer your question he's strong, protective, smart, and a bit shy about our relationship; he has a few faults but the faults are what make him more attractive to me," Neal said with a smile as he thought of Peter before drinking the rest of his wine.

Jordan nodded his head a bit as he picked at his food not feeling as hungry as before. "Well then I guess after dinner you'll want to pack up and get some rest," he said sounding a little rejected._ He can't leave his room unless the door is unlocked from the outside so as long as I keep his door shut he'll be staying here and earning me more money,_ Jordan thought as he gave up on eating. Neal helped himself to another serving before finally putting his fork down and rising from the table. "That was a decent meal, but now I have to go finish packing," Neal said as he walked out of the apartment and headed back to his own. As he walked into his apartment Neal shut the door behind him knowing he could pick the lock in the morning if he needed to. After packing Neal pulled his tool kit out and began to pick the lock on security screen on the window, and then when he heard the lock click open he smiled, and opened the screen and pushed the window up before climbing out onto the fire escape.

Shivering in the cool breeze of the twilight air Neal pocketed his tools and sat down against the still warm stone wall of the building. He watched the sky as a few clouds drifted above him as the sun began to set on that August day. _In two months it will be one year since I was kidnapped and brought to Colin in Italy…I can't believe time moved so fast,_ Neal thought as he put his head back and watched the clouds turn pink and gold.

"Caffrey what are you doing out there?" Jack asked over the ear piece, Neal smirked as he pointed to his neck knowing that Jack could see him on the camera and see that he wasn't wearing his microphone necklace. Neal closed his eyes and sighed softly at the free time he was getting, he knew that he would be getting reprimanded soon but having his own choice on his own life in the last few days and it made feel free for the first time in a long time.

Jack was fuming as he slammed his hand against the table "You give me a migraine… I'm going home," Jack said into the microphone as he got up and stormed out of the room and past the three FBI agents where he barely acknowledged them as he walked out the door. Peter got up from where he was sitting and walked into the surveillance room and saw that Neal was out on his fire escape and with a small chuckle Peter called Neal again and watched him pick up on the monitor.

Neal opened his eyes as he pulled one leg up to his chest. "Soon all of this will be over and I can have my bed back at June's where I plan on taking a day or two or maybe six off from work and just laying around with a three hundred dollar bottle of wine and chocolates while watching the classics. Then I'm taking a hot bath for an hour or maybe three and just forget about who I work for, the FBI… not you personally." Neal said as he pushed a few fly away bangs that the breeze had caught and had blown back in his eyes.

Peter watched Neal and smiled. "That sounds like a great vacation and you deserve it after everything you've been through in the last few months," Peter remarked as he leaned back a bit in his seat. Neal sighed softly "I'm not singing tonight so I'll be trying to get some sleep. That I can be of some help to you guys tomorrow" Neal said as he moved his shoulders a bit against the wall behind him to massage his shoulders a bit. "Good night Peter, I'll see you in the afternoon," the ex con said softly. "Good night Neal…" Peter said before hanging up his phone and joining Jones and Diana in the other room.

"Any luck on finding anything that proves Jack is dirty agent that we know he is or are we just grasping at straws?" Peter asked as he grabbed a folder of the table. Diana rubbed the sleep out of her eyes as she replied. "We can't find anything that points to him being dirty, it could have just been a backless threat that he wouldn't go through with but it was a big enough threat to get Neal to listen to him, you do it all the time with Neal when you tell him you're going to send him to prison when you know you would never go through with it… and after tomorrow the DEA will take all the credit for the arrest and Neal will be safe under FBI care and we don't have to deal with Lawson after this night."She argued to make a case to Peter that she hoped he would accept.

Nodding his head Peter put the folder back down "We're all staying the night here; I want to be close by just in case they need backup," Peter said as he tried to make himself comfortable on the small couch. Jones and Diana looked at each other and put their computers to sleep for the night before retreating to separate couches in the room to relax before turning in for the evening. Peter chewed his lip as he thought back to earlier that day.

* * *

Neal woke the next mid morning to the sound of a car horn on the street below; he pulled his cell phone out and looked at the time and saw it was ten minutes past eleven. _The shipment doesn't arrive for another hour so it would be nice to look around a bit in the basement before everything goes down,_ Neal thought as he put the necklace on by habit and began to work on the locked door. When the lock clicked open he left the room before making his way silently down the hall and into the stairwell. As he walked down the stairs Neal froze when he heard voices on the second floor as Angie and Greta were talking by the elevator but when he heard them get into the elevator he resumed going down the last two flights until he reached the basement.

Moving silently through the maze of boxes Neal heard voices coming from the other end of the basement and began to make his way toward them until he found himself standing behind a large box. Trying to get closer Neal accidently stepped on a rat's tail and during the commotion he knocked over a few boxes bring the guards attention to his location. He was forced at gun point past the shelves and into the open area where the sale was taking place he watched as the guards walked off down a smaller hallway to what Neal surmised to be a street exit. Jordan stood in the shadows his face barely visible as he stood next to his supplier "Lark what are you doing down here?" Jordan asked as he shoved the money into his pocket.

Before Neal could answer the other man stepped out of the shadows pulling his gun and without warning squeezed off three rounds, each hitting their target. With a quick hand motion the shooter and Jordan took off down the back hallway leaving Neal to bleed to death on the floor of the semi dark rat infested basement. Neal knew he had been shot severely and when he started to feel numb he realized that it wouldn't have to wait much longer for the end to come. _I don't want to die alone…Peter where are you? _Neal thought as he felt a couple warm tears slide down into his hair.

Freezing at the sound Peter knew it all too well the sound of close range gun fire was deafening he knew the only way he was hearing it through the speakers was that Neal was there where the shooting took place. Not taking any chances Peter grabbed the bullet proof vest off one of the chairs. "Diana I want you and Jones to back me up. Take your radios and put on your vests I don't need anyone getting shot," Peter ordered as he ran out of the apartment and down the stairs. He flashed his badge as he ran across the street his gun drawn as he went in through the front door of the club. He pointed his gun at the four sitting at a large table. "Keep your hands where I can see them, now where's Neal… I mean Lark," Peter asked knowing that as he scanned the room quickly. All four forced workers pointed toward the stairs "His room is upstairs but you might want to check the basement that's where the gun fire came from," Ty said as he slowly lowered his hands as Peter walked into the stairwell.

Peter tore down the stairs and into the basement with his gun drawn as he looked around for signs of anyone still down there. When he heard the slam of a distant door he moved against the wall into the open area as he looked around the wall and saw Neal laying on the floor gasping for breath. Throwing everything else into the wind Peter rushed over and removed his jacket as he tried to comprehend what he was seeing. After a second he grabbed his radio "I have a man down in the basement of the club I need an ambulance right now!" he yelled into the radio as he placed his coat over one of the gunshot wounds and pressed down.

Neal opened his eyes and began to cough up blood as the pressure was applied to his wound. "He...y...Peter... I didn't think I would get to see you again...before you know..." Neal said as he tried to hold back another bloody cough. Peter tried to hide his worry but he knew he was failing miserably. He tried to form words but they kept dying in his throat. Neal gave a weak smile as he raised his hand and put it on Peter's cheek. "If this was a movie, this is where you're supposed to say some cheesy line about how you can't live without me and that I can't die...before I you know die," Neal said as he began to struggle to breathe.

"Well then consider this my cheesy line, now stop talking or I'm going to put you back in prison..." Peter choked out as he kept pressure on the wound. Neal blinked back a few tears before speaking. "All the thefts that you think I've done, I have... and everything I stole is in a storage locker in Boston on the harbor...under the name Terry Pentice..." and as his breathing became more labored Neal struggled to sit up; Peter moved quickly and put his arm around Neal and pulled him into his arms. "I...I'm... glad... that...I met...you and Elizabeth...and... June... I love you all so much... you're the family... that I never had..."Neal said softly as a few tears slid down his cheeks. Peter was never one for tears but after that speech from Neal which touched him so deeply he just couldn't help it. "Neal...I promise you right now if you pull through this I'll take you to whatever museum you want to go to whenever you want to go and I'll take you on proper dates to restaurants and the theater. I'll even let you play with the radio in the car on stakeouts and I'll stop bringing deviled ham," Peter said softly as he put his forehead against Neal's. "Why is it that now when you are dying in my arms that I finally realize just how much I love you?" Peter asked as he pushed down on the wound a bit more. Neal gave a weak smile "its karma when someone becomes truly happy they must suffer," Neal remarked as he shifted a bit closer into Peter's chest for warmth.

Just as he was about to respond Peter looked up at the sound of a door opening and saw two EMTs rush and rip Neal out of his arms and put him on a gurney. Peter quickly got to his got to his feet and followed close behind as they went back through the club and started to put Neal into the back of the ambulance. With a flash of his badge Peter was allowed access. "Where is he being taken?" Peter asked as he watched Neal being hooked up to machines. "The Brooklyn Hospital Center," the driver yelled over the noise of the siren as he drove through the traffic. Peter tried to figure mentally how close they were to the hospital when he opened his eyes and watched his friend closely "It's not too far Neal we're going to get you all patched up," Peter said as he held Neal's hand in his.

When the ambulance pulled up to the emergency room doors Peter sat back as Neal was taken into the hospital and rushed into emergency surgery. Peter slowly climbed out of the ambulance and when he made his way toward the doors he knew that he had to make a very personal call to his wife. Pulling out his cell phone he speed dialed Elizabeth and when she picked up he offered no warm greeting Elizabeth felt her stomach drop "Peter...what's wrong?" her voice filled with worry, it took Peter a minute to find his voice. "I don't know what happened... Neal went into the basement of the club and he was shot, he's in emergency surgery now. We're at the Brooklyn Hospital Center "Peter said as he looked at his blood covered hand as the red liquid dried. "El...I don't think he's going to make it..." Peter said softly as he ran his fingers through his hair.


	7. Chapter 7

((**thanks to everyone who read and reviewed Dragon's den, here is the final chapter of this story again I do not own, wish I did thank you Pepppe for betaing everyday and I hope you all enjoy))**

**Chapter 7: Death of a Dragon**

"I'll be right there honey, let me just make sure the others know I'm leaving," Elizabeth said her voice breaking a bit as she hung up but when she put her phone away she fell into the closest chair as she tried to compose herself before going back into the charity event. After going back inside and locating the others she explained that she would be leaving and would not be back. Ignoring her slightly smeared makeup she hailed a cab and rode to the hospital when she walked into the waiting room she found Peter in the corner alone; Elizabeth rushed over and put her arms around Peter. "Have you heard anything yet?" she asked as held onto her husband as she sat down beside him. Shaking his head Peter looked at the floor of the waiting room, his cell phone was held tightly in his hands. "I should call Dante…Neal's parents should know about this and calling him is the only way," Peter said softly as he looked at his phone in his hands.

Elizabeth reached over and took Peter's phone from him "I'll do it," she said softly as she dialed Dante's number and waited for him to pick up. "Dante… its Elizabeth…you need to call your family and have them come to the Brooklyn Hospital Center, Neal's been shot and it's pretty bad. I think everyone should be here just in case things take a turn for the worst," she said reaching over with her free hand and placing it on her husband's knee to comfort him. Dante was frozen on the other end of the line, he knew his family was still in the city, they were using the reunion as an excuse to case a few museums for a couple weeks before hitting them. "I'll call them…thanks for calling Elizabeth, its better they hear this from me instead of some secretary from the FBI," he said as he hung up the phone, Dante internally debated who to call first his parents or his aunt and uncle and only after a couple minutes he picked up his cell phone and dialed.

As the other line rang he went over what to say in his mind when the other line picked up he forgot everything and blurted the first thing that came to mind "Neal's been shot and it's all Burke's fault," Dante said as he tried to imagine how Neal was shot he knew his cousin knew how to shoot but that he also severely hated guns with a passion. _ I knew that going undercover was dangerous but no one listened to me yet again,_ Dante thought as he looked across the bullpen at his cousin's empty desk.

"Dante… where is he, is he at a hospital?" Nicolai asked as he tried to snap his cousin out of whatever trance he was in. "Oh right sorry, yeah he's in surgery right now at The Brooklyn Hospital Center, just get everyone there as soon as possible I'll meet you there as soon as I can; I have to fill in everyone here at the office," Dante said as he got up his cell phone glued to his ear as he walked up to Hughes' office "Nicolai just try and keep your father from hitting Burke at least 'til I get there to keep it from escalating to an international incident," Dante remarked before hanging up and walking into Hughes' office.

Holding his hand up Hughes double finger pointed to the seat in front of his desk "I want a sixteen block radius around that club and I want every alley searched and I want every precinct and FBI agent that can be spared searching for this man. He either shot or knows who shot Caffrey. Get on it now I want him caught!" Hughes ordered before hanging up and looking at the liaison agent standing in the doorway. "Go… we're taking care of everything on this end," he said as he got up from his seat and walked past Dante out to over look over the bull pen "Listen up, Caffrey's been shot and he's critical I want everyone to put down what they're doing and meet me in the conference room," Hughes ordered as he watched Dante wade through the crowd of agents and catch one of the elevators.

* * *

Nicolai walked back over to his family as they were looking at the paintings on display thinking the easiest person to tell first would be his father. Nicolai walked over to him and put his hand on his father's shoulder and leaned over to whisper into his ear "Neal's been shot and according to Dante he might not make it; we should go to the hospital." Victor looked over at his wife before nodding and walking over to Natasha pulling her away from the rest of the family he brought her over to a bench and told her gently about Neal.

As the family left the museum they piled into the waiting stretch limo, silence filled the vehicle as they traveled through the city. When the limo pulled up to the main entrance the limo emptied. Victor led the family inside and after being pointed to the correct waiting room where they made their way through the hospital till they found the waiting room outside the operating wing they saw Peter in the corner with his wife.

"Burke…what the hell happened to my son? He was supposed to be in your care and you let him get shot?" Victor asked as he walked over and grabbed Peter by the front of his shirt pulling him to his feet. Peter pulled away as he scanned the family's faces. "I don't know…the bust was supposed to happen at noon but Neal went into the basement. He discovered that the buy was going down and he was shot without warning, I told him the night before to keep out of trouble but he just didn't listen," Peter said softly as he fell back into his seat clearly distraught that Neal was shot.

Natasha looked at her husband "Victor…Agent Burke did not get our son shot; now sit down" she ordered pointing at the hard plastic chair across from Peter. With a small grumbled the elder Caffrey took his seat and looked at the FBI agent sitting across from him. Soon everyone found a seat around the small room. Natasha sat beside her husband and looked at Elizabeth. "You must be Elizabeth, Neal talks about you in all his emails; I take it that you were the one who planned our family reunion; it was so well put together and in such a classy hotel," Natasha said as she gave Elizabeth a weak smile as she reached over and took her husband's hand. "I want to say thank you for keeping Neal out of serious trouble, he tells me in his emails how interesting it is to see the world from another point of view, and instead of being chased he's doing the chasing so to speak. He really enjoys your husband's company even when they argue about stakeout food." Natasha said with a small smile.

Dante walked into the waiting room and made his way over to Peter only to be held back by his cousin with one hand. "He's not to blame; right now we all need to hold it together for Neal's sake," Nicolai said as he moved his hand and took his seat by his mother. Dante looked at Peter momentarily before going to sit by his brothers and their families. Once seated he glanced around the room prior to locking eyes with Elizabeth "I called Mozzie and June on the way over, they will be here as soon as they can, June's trying to catch the earliest flight she can and well Mozzie is Mozzie you know," he said with the smallest of chuckles.

After three hours of waiting patience had begun to grown thin among the group when the nurses would not answer their questions about Neal and just before anger erupted, two doctors in walked out to the waiting area. "We're looking for the family of Neal Caffrey," one of the doctors said as they looked around the group. Victor and Natasha got to their feet and walked over to the doctors. "We're his parents, is our son going to be all right?" Natasha asked as she felt her husband put his arm around her.

"You're son was brought in with multiple gunshot wounds to his chest, the first hit him in the sternum, the second nicked his heart before piercing his lung and the last struck him in the shoulder. He lost a quart of blood at the scene and another half while on the table, his heart stopped twice before we were able to bring him back to a normal sinus rhythm but he should be fine once he wakes up. The nurse will take you two to recovery so you can be with him when he wakes, I'm sorry but due to limited space only two can go at a time," the other doctor replied as he pointed them to the waiting nurse. Both Caffreys followed the nurse down the hall to the recovery room.

Peter got to his feet and began to pace between the chairs in the waiting room more in anger than anything else. He stopped when he saw three familiar faces the one in the center of the group looking as angry as him. "You…where the hell were you!" Peter yelled as he practically charged at Jack standing in the hallway by the waiting area. "Where was I… I was prepping my team while stuck in traffic trying to get to them before noon! You should have been watching Caffrey. He severely fucked up my sting and now Wilson is in the wind somewhere, I thought you had some control over him!" Jack retorted. Elizabeth moved over to where Lise and Celestia were sitting. "Why don't we get the girls something to eat downstairs," she suggested knowing that something would happen and it would be best for young ears not to hear anymore. As they left Elizabeth looked back her husband and gave him a small nod.

Jack looked at the group that had now taken to standing up before turning his attention back to Peter "You know I knew something like this might happen, I assume he's not dead since no one's bawling their eyes out, that's good because as soon as he's released I'm dragging his worthless ass to prison like I promised where he can bend over for everyone and service anyone who asks for it," Jack commented with a smirk. Peter felt his self control snap as he punched Jack in the face successfully fracturing the other man's cheek as he sent Jack sliding across the floor and into the wall.

"This explains why Neal didn't want me to come get him yesterday, he was afraid that you would send him back to prison… I should have gotten him out of there anyway," Peter said as he took a seat in the nearest chair. Jack pushed himself up and shakily got to his feet "I'll have your badge for this Burke…you're going to be lucky if you even get a crossing guard job when I'm through with you," Jack promised as he stormed off down the hallway his two lead agents trailing behind him.

Vincent stood up and walked over to Peter and shook his hand. "If my brother had heard someone say that about his son he probably would have put a bullet in his head without blinking…you showed a lot of restraint even though he didn't deserve it," Vincent remarked as he slowly let go of Peter's hand. Peter gave a small nod "I've wanted to do that since I met him yesterday morning and even if I lose my job it was worth it. That man needed to be brought down a few pegs," Peter remarked as he looked down the hall toward the recovery room.

* * *

Elizabeth walked by the window, she barely looked at the gray stormy skies as she sat down by the bed. As the thunder rumbled she looked across the hospital bed at her husband who was fast asleep his head resting on the bed his hand wrapped tightly around Neal's. _I should call about that thirty-two guest party, the planning will get out of hand but I'll wait till noon when the girls are on their lunch break,_ Elizabeth thought as she moved a large stuffed bear out of the other chair.

"Why does it smell like a florist in here?" Neal grumbled as he slowly opened his eyes to the soft glow of the table lamp beside his bed casting shadows from the get well cards that were taking up all the surface space on the night table. Elizabeth rubbed her eyes and looked at Neal with a smile. "You have a lot of admirers at the office and your family as well," she said softly as she reached over and pushed some of Neal's hair out of his eyes.

Neal looked to the other side of his bed and saw his partner was sound asleep. "He looks horrible… how long have I been asleep?" Neal asked as he started to sit up only to be stopped by a hand on his chest. "You'll wake him up and he really needs his sleep right now, and to answer your question you've been asleep for about two and half weeks now…the doctors figured that when you were shot you must have hit your head on the basement floor before Peter found you. You had emergency surgery to remove the bullets and they couldn't put you under a second time so soon after your first surgery so they decided to wait to see if you would wake up on your own," Elizabeth said as she slowly stood up. "I'm going to get some coffee I'll be back in a few minutes," she said as she kissed Neal on the forehead before walking out of the room and closing the door quietly behind her.

Peter shifted a bit before sitting up and stretching his back as he casually looked at Neal, expecting to see him lying in bed. He blinked a couple times before realizing that Neal was awake and looking at him. "Don't I get a wake up a kiss or anything?" the ex con asked with a smile as he pushed himself up a bit though his shoulder began to bug him.

"You're going to get something alright, Neal what possessed you to go into that basement alone you almost died!" Peter reprimanded as watched Neal look down at the bed. "I'm sorry Peter, I thought I could help out by knowing the floor plan to tell you, but the buy turned out to be an hour early. I tried to stay out of sight but I stepped on a rat's tail and I jumped at the noise it made, I knocked a box over… then one the guards came over and led me to Jordan and the buyer pulled a gun and shot me." Neal said as he started to break down as a reaction to Peter yelling at him. Peter tried to stay angry but he felt his anger melt away at the sight of his partner looking so defeated. "Neal...it's alright I shouldn't have snapped at you like that, now lay back down and get some more rest or you're going to rip your stitches out," Peter said comfortingly as he pushed Neal back down and moved his hand up to ruffle Neal's hair a bit. "You just scared me so bad; I thought I had lost you," Peter said softly.

Once he was comfortable against the pillows Neal looked at his partner. "Have you been here the whole time I've been in the coma? Because you look terrible, and what happened with the case?" He asked trying to fill in the two week that was blank in his mind. Peter chuckled "I've been here since you were brought here, as for the case from what I've heard Jordan and the buyer are in the wind still. Diana, Jones, Dante and Nicolai are working together to look at sources and shake every tree for information. I'm currently off the case and on suspension for two more weeks… apparently giving the lead agent of the DEA a black eye and fracturing his cheekbone can land a person in hot water. He threatened to get me fired but it backfired and I was just suspended four weeks but I was allowed to stay by your bedside to be a familiar face and also to get your statement while the rest of the department is working hard" Peter said as he pulled his hand away and sat back in his seat.

Taking a deep breath Peter looked at his partner "I know this is a bad time to ask, Neal but could you tell me anything you remember about the buyer. It could help the others track him down. I know it was two weeks ago but you're the only person who's seen his face and if we wait too long you will start to forget details," Peter said gently as not to cause Neal any discomfort. Neal closed his eyes and put his head back against the raised pillows of the hospital bed and tried to recall any information. "It was pretty dark, he was standing on the step up from me so if he was standing beside me he might have been close to your height," Neal said softly as he kept his eyes closed. When there was a knock on the door he opened his eyes and watched a man walk in.

Peter got to his feet "What are you doing here Jack?" Peter asked Jack held his hands up in defense. "I'm just here to see how Caffrey's doing since he's been in a coma, and it looks like he finally woke up," Jack said as he walked over to Neal's bedside and looked down at Neal with a small smile. Neal looked at the DEA agent and began to flashback to his shooting. Neal began to break out in a cold sweat as his heart began to race. "No… get away…No! No! Stay away from me!" Neal screamed as he began to thrash around causing his heart monitor beep loudly. Peter grabbed Neal and held him against his chest to calm him down as a nurse ran in and injected a sedative into his IV line. "I'm right here Neal…I'm not going to go anywhere I promise," Peter said softly as he rubbed Neal's back as the drugs took over. The nurse grabbed Neal's chart in annoyance and wrote down a few things. "Please don't stress the patient out anymore or I'll have you thrown out," she requested though it sounded more like an order as she left the room without looking behind her.

* * *

Jack let out a low whistle as he watched Peter coddled Neal and whispering to him. It took him a minute for Peter to peel himself out of Neal's hold before pulling the sheets up and tucking them around the younger man. He then moved over to Jack and grabbed him by the arm and dragged him out of the room. "Before I break your jaw you better tell me what you did to make him react like that," Peter demanded as he shoved Jack against the wall. Jack moved forward and shoved Peter back. "I haven't done a thing to him, you think maybe after the shooting and the rape that he's finally lost his marbles… he's damaged goods Burke he needs to go back to jail," Jack said as he dusted himself off.

"What do you have against Neal? Ever since yesterday morning I could tell you've been judging him for no reason other than he's a former criminal, and how did you know about the rape I never said anything to anyone and I highly doubt Neal would tell a perfect stranger," Peter remarked as he watched the other agent. Jack smirked "I don't have time to talk about petty incidents that has already happened, unlike you I have a job to do. I'll see you around Burke," Jack said as he started to walk away.

Peter walked after Jack and grabbed him by the arm and held him back. "I'm not done with you yet," Peter said loudly though he was unaware that his wife was walking down the hall with Neal's parents. "If you ever come near Neal again I'll give you more than a black eye," Peter warned as he shoved Jack down the hall toward the elevator. Jack smirked before commenting "I think you're losing it Burke I didn't do anything but come to see how he was and he panicked. I'll be going now but I'll see you soon maybe on another joint effort to bring down art smugglers and drug dealers or maybe for a real kick maybe I'll transfer to the FBI," he said before walking past the other three and through the closing doors of the elevator.

Elizabeth walked over to her husband with a worried look on her face. "Honey who was that man?" she asked as she watched Peter's anger slowly ebb away. "That's the man who was responsible for Neal on the last two days of the case, could you three sit with Neal until he wakes up," Peter added. "He had to be sedated just now though when Jack came into the room to say hello and Neal just started screaming for Jack to get away from him, I'm worried that he's having a breakdown, I'm going to call Dr. Parker and ask him to see him as soon as he can," he explained pulling his phone out of his pocket.

Giving a small nod Elizabeth led Victor and Natasha into Neal's room to wait for him to wake up again. Peter walked down the hall to the empty waiting area. After hitting speed dial he looked behind him at the hall as the other line picked up. "Diana I need a favor… I need a copy of the surveillance recordings from Neal's necklace from the day before Neal was shot I have to check something out I know it's a lot to ask for right now but it's for Neal. I'll talk to you when you get here and what about that storage locker in Boston any word from the field office up there? Oh…really I see thanks Diana I need to make another call I'll talk to you later," Peter said before hanging up.

After going through his contact list he found the number he was looking for when the secretary on the other line picked up he began to tell her that he needed to speak to Doctor Parker to make an emergency appointment for Neal as soon as possible, when he was done he hung up and walked back to Neal's room and found the others talking quietly while Neal slept.

* * *

Peter looked up when he heard Neal began to wake up and when he was sure Neal was fully conscious he cleared his throat before speaking "The field office from Boston called… they looked in the storage locker and all they found was a case of champagne next to a small table and a single glass with a card saying Terry Pentice which after a few tries I found out is an anagram for Nice Try Peter… so you lied to me on what you thought was your deathbed. So which part was the lie, all of it or just the part about what you stole?" Peter asked not pleased at his partner.

Neal looked up with his best innocent puppy dog eyes "I only lied about one thing and it wasn't that I loved you… and the others it was just the location of where everything is hidden that I lied about," Neal said as he pressed the bed adjustment so he was sitting up. "So when am I going to be released from the hospital?" Neal asked as he tried to change the subject.

"Oh not for a couple days, your panic attack has caused some worry and under the guidance of Doctor Parker the hospital is holding you for a twenty-four hour psych hold; you had us worried and I hate to do this but I need to know why you started screaming at Jack to get away from you. I know you probably don't want to tell me but I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important," Peter said softly as he put his hand on Neal's.

Looking down at the hand covering his Neal pulled his hand away and closed it into a light fist. "I can't…if I say anything it could mean you could lose your job and I'll go back to prison… and he promised that I would be going to general population this time," Neal said softly as he looked down at the bed. Peter gave the smallest of smiles. "That's not going to happen you're back under FBI custody and you haven't violated your parole at all so you can tell me," he said as he shifted his seat a bit closer to the bed, Neal glanced at his partner out of the corner of his eye a few times as he got ready to speak. As he looked up at Peter he felt himself shake a bit as he shook his head so violently he made himself dizzy. "I can't tell you Peter; can't you just forget it, I just want to forget it…please let me forget it," Neal said to himself as he put his hands against his face and let his fingers tangle in his hair.

Not wanting to bring the nurse back Peter moved so he was sitting on the bed. "Hey come here, I'm sorry I didn't mean to upset you…I'm just trying to put all the pieces together and find the man that shot you," Peter said as he scooted over so Neal could lean against. Neal grabbed his pillow and dropped it on Peter's lap before moving down a bit so there was room and curling up slightly. "It's comfortable like this…can we sit like this for a while?" Neal asked as he closed his eyes. "For a little while, your parents took Elizabeth out to dinner since they couldn't take the hospital food any more but they promised to bring something back for us," Peter said as he found himself playing with Neal's hair.

After a few minutes of sitting like that Peter looked down and found Neal had fallen asleep_ He's been through so much and I couldn't risk him having another panic attack but it's clear now… the threats, the reaction to meeting Jack face to face. I don't want to believe it but Jack Lawson it seems is not only a dirty agent but he is also selling drugs. In fact he has probably confiscated the drugs on other busts…and he's the one who shot Neal,_ Peter thought as he watched Neal sleep when he heard his phone buzz he tried not to jostle Neal as he retrieved his phone from his pocket.

"Burke…oh good, I'm kind of pinned at the moment. You need to come up to Neal's room and we'll talk about everything…no, you'll see what I mean when you get here," Peter said as he hung up on Diana and went back to stroking back Neal's hair.

* * *

Diana made her way up to Neal's private room when she got there she found her boss petting Neal's hair as he slept. "So what's so important that I had to come all the way here?" She asked as she leaned against the wall. Peter shifted a bit and looked down at Neal for a moment "I asked you here because I need another favor I need you to assign someone to follow Lawson around, Neal met him for the first time face to face today or so I thought, as soon as he saw Jack Neal had a panic attack and then all the pieces clicked into place…Jack is the one that shot Neal." Peter said as he kept his voice down so he wouldn't wake Neal.

"I'll put someone on it as soon as I get back to the office and I pulled the tape you wanted and I think you need to hear this when you get some time alone…basically it explains why Neal panicked the way he did when Jack came in the room. "Diana said as she handed the digital recorder over to Peter. Not wanting to wait Peter turned the volume down enough so only he would hear it and held it up to his ear as he listened to Jack introduce himself to Neal and threaten to throw him in jail and to ruin Peter's career.

Peter turned the recording off and handed back to the other agent. "It explains everything now, why Neal was afraid to leave and why he apologized for going into the basement he was doing it to protect me," Peter said softly as he continued to pet Neal's hair. "I'll let you get back to work; I'll call you in the morning," he said as he looked at Neal as Elizabeth walked into the room with Neal's parents and Diana slipped out of the room.

Elizabeth smiled as she held up two large bags of food. Neal began to mumble in his sleep as he slowly opened his eyes and saw everyone looking at him, as he sat up he looked at his partner's wife. "Is that real food?" he asked with a smile as he raised his arm to fix his hair only to wince at the pain in his shoulder. "We brought you two something simple, grilled chicken salads and tossed pasta salad without the olives." Natasha said as she began to unpack one of the bags that Elizabeth had put on the dresser. Neal smiled as he took the food from his mother before digging in.

* * *

After dinner Elizabeth kissed Neal's forehead and excused herself to go home and take care of Satchmo. Peter got up from the chair he was sitting in "I'll be back Neal, I'm just going to walk El to her car," Peter said as they left the room together leaving Neal alone with his parents. As Neal looked at his parents he could feel the silence bearing down on them. "We're glad to see that you've woken up sweetie, the doctors couldn't tell us anything more than that you were in a coma and that we had to wait for you to wake up on your own," Natasha said as she sat on the bed and hugged her son. Victor looked at his son for a few moments before speaking to him. "This thing with Burke how serious is it?" Victor asked as he watched his son's reaction.

Neal looked at his parents with a look of shock and confusion "It's pretty serious, how long have you known about it?" Neal asked as he looked more to his father. "Dante told everyone at the reunion and your mother already had a feeling from your emails… the only reason I'm asking is he broke it off with you once before how do you know he won't do it again?" Victor asked as he took a seat by the bed. Neal didn't even bother to ask how they knew as he sat up as best he could without pulling on his stitches.

"I don't know if he will ever do it again but what I do know is that right now I love him and I don't care if you can't stand to hear it…Peter has been there for me through more of the pain I've been through in the last year, and he's put his career on the line so many times to keep me from going back to prison that I've almost lost count," Neal said as he locked eyes with his father. "I hope that answers your question" Neal added coldly as he began to lie back down, Victor sighed before speaking. "Neal we don't care if you're gay, straight or bi we just don't want to see you get your heart broken…again."

Before he could respond Neal looked at the door as Peter walked in with Nicolai and Dante "I ran into them in the lobby so I brought them up to see how you were doing," Peter said as he let Nicolai and Dante move to the free side of Neal's bed. Nicolai ruffled Neal's hair out of place "It's good to see you in one piece little brother; I don't think I ever saw dad so worried about you," Nicolai said as he looked at his father. "Well except for that time I accidentally lost you at the park and you ended up taking the bus home and I ended up grounded for a year," Nicolai said as he recalled the past. Neal smirked remembering the trouble his brother got into "I was four Nick and you were flirting with a girl four years older than you and you told me to stay on the bench because I cramped your style, then you walked off so I decided to go home and teach you a lesson," Neal retorted as he smirked.

As everyone talked Peter watched Neal smile and have fun with his family and by the time visiting hours were over everyone was talked out. Neal said his goodbyes to his family before they left. "I'll see you tomorrow little brother…agent Burke," Nicolai said as he nodded his head before walking out of Neal's room with his parents and their cousin. As soon as they were alone Neal looked at his partner "Peter do you love me?" Neal asked bluntly as the FBI was starting to sit down and almost missing the chair. "What brought this on? Did your father say something to you?" he asked caught himself from his near fall. Neal looked at his handler with a determined look on his face. "Alright… yes I do love you; do you want me to prove it?" Peter asked in a joking tone.

With a smile Neal nodded his head "Well, I was going to accept hearing it but since you offered I want a kiss, and not just any kiss I want one that with take my breath away and it can't be weak it has to be… Neal was cut off by Peter's lips; his mind went blank as he felt his body go weak. Neal was sure if he had been standing his legs would have given out. When he felt Peter pull away Neal's eyes snapped open as he tried to catch his breath "…perfect" Neal whispered as he finished his train of thought.

"Now that you got what you wanted you should go to sleep now; the sooner you show the doctors you're well and you won't have another recurring panic attack then the sooner you'll probably get out of the hospital," Peter said as he took his seat by the bed and watched as Neal begin to drift off to sleep. _I'm just glad that Nicolai agreed to watch him tomorrow I don't need Neal worrying about me,_ Peter thought as he pulled the sheets up a bit so Neal could sleep.

* * *

"Yeah, I'll make sure that he doesn't leave his room. You just need real careful, this has got to be one of the craziest ideas I've ever heard of," Nicolai said as he got off the phone with Peter unaware that his brother was up and was faking his phone in his pocket Nicolai walked around by the door. Neal opened his eyes a crack before sitting up. "Where is Peter, and what's with the guard duty walk by the door?" he asked as he got out of bed and pulled his IV out of the back of his hand slowly.

Nicolai stood by the door blocking the only way out "I've been given direct orders by Peter to not let you out of this room until he brings that dirty agent down in a sting operation at the club. He didn't want you to worry so he asked me to keep you calm and ask the nurses to sedate you if you try to run," Nicolai said as he crossed his arms over his chest. Neal sat on the end of the bed and looked at his brother "Nick I've rarely asked you for anything but this time you have just let me go and I will owe you please," Neal pleaded. "He'll be fine Neal just relax and read a magazine, Burke said he would be back before noon," Nicolai said as he leaned against the door.

Neal stood up and walked up to his brother "Fine all the cards are on the table, not only will I owe you one but I'll keep my mouth shut about your deep dark secret about what you do for a living in Russia," Neal threatened as he stood there. Nicolai tried to stare his brother down "You wouldn't dare, you know dad would disown me if he ever found out about that," Nicolai remarked as he tried to keep staring at his little brother after another minute he sighed. "You know what fine, but if you get hurt just remember Burke will have both our asses," Nicolai warned.

With a smirk Neal bit his lip "Oh I don't mind he already owns me and I'm starting to like the spanking, now let me borrow your clothes I can't exactly go in a hospital gown and lend me the keys for your rental…" Neal said holding his hand out. Nicolai pulled his keys out of his pocket "You scratch my rental and you pay for it," Nicolai threatened as he removed his jacket and shirt before handing them over to Neal along with his pants. Neal changed as quickly as he could before looking at the car keys in his hand. "Where did you park your car anyway?" Neal asked as he pocketed the keys.

"Level two of the parking garage, you can't miss it… it's a blue green Ford Focus," Nicolai said as he watched Neal's face fall a bit at the type of car he rented. "You know what it was the only thing left and I'm not happy either," he said grabbing the blanket off the bed and putting it around his waist to cover himself up.

Fixing his hair a bit Neal walked to the door "I really owe you for this…" he said as he walked out of the room and made his way to elevator as he ignored the dull throbbing pain in his shoulder and chest. _ I guess I'm still not a hundred percent… I'm actually glad I slept through most of the healing,_ Neal thought as he hoped the nurses wouldn't recognize him as he walked past the nurse's station. Neal gave a sigh of relief as he got into the elevator and made his way down to the lobby and when he got there he made way to front doors before stepping out of the hospital a temporarily free man. Looking up at the sky Neal gave a small smile at the clouds floated in the September morning sky. "For a little while I'm like you at least until Peter gets his hands on me," he said softly as he made his way to the parking garage and found his brother's rental before taking off for the club where Peter was.

* * *

As Peter looked at the closed club he pulled out his phone and made a call to the FBI office after leaving a message for Diana with a probationary agent telling her that he was at the club looking for clues about who shot Neal. After hanging up Peter walked into the club and made his way to the fourth floor only to find the large apartment completely empty. _He cleared out of here fast using his lawyers to prevent his home from being searched and now there is nothing left in here so I might as well head to the basement._ Peter thought as he walked back into the stairwell and made his way down four flights of stairs and into the basement.

In the semi darkness Peter maneuvered his way through the shelf maze to where he had found Neal two weeks prior to that day. Peter moved down one step into the lower area and looked around trying to figure out just how close Neal had been to his shooter. Looking around Peter tried to imagine how it looked when Neal had been standing there. "Neal would have been standing here and he was laying down facing behind me which means the shooter was behind me," Peter said to himself as he looked at the distance. Peter felt a shiver go down his spine when he realized that if hadn't gotten to Neal as quickly as he did the younger man would have died. Looking at the spot on the floor where Neal had been laying Peter found himself lost in a trance as he stared at the faint stain on the cement floor.

As he stood in the basement Peter pulled his phone out and called Diana. "Where is he now?" he asked as he stood still to keep his cell signal. Diana bit her lip before responding. "I lost him boss about five minutes ago. He jumped out of the cab he was in and took another in the middle of the street and I lost him but he was heading north away from the FBI office the last time I saw him," Diana said as she ran her fingers through her hair. Peter nodded his head "Don't worry about it I have a feeling he'll be coming here, I'm going to need back up… don't worry I have my back up weapon with me if he does actually show up," Peter remarked as he scanned the basement. He knew a cab ride from the FBI office to the club was a forty minute car ride but he knew that by cab it could be quicker depending on how fast the cab driver went. "I'm leaving now boss I'll be there as soon as I can," Diana said before hanging up.

Peter pocketed his phone and looked around, he glanced at his watch. When he heard footsteps on the stairs her pulled his back up gun out of his holster under his jacket as he turned around and searched the shadows for movement. "So Burke when did you figure out that it was me?" Jack asked as he came out of the shadows his gun pointed at Peter. "Now what do you mean figure it out do you mean how I figured out you were a vindictive son of a bitch who took out all your hate on Neal, or that you were the one who tried to kill him because he walked in on you dealing drugs to the man you claimed to be busting for the same thing?" Peter asked with a smirk.

Jack nodded his head a bit "So you're not as stupid as you look Burke, but then again you did come here without back up; so how did you know I would be here?" he asked taking a step closer into the light his gun pointed at Peter. Peter looked up the barrel of Jack's gun "I knew that if I left a message with a probie at the office for Diana that I was going to the club to look for evidence on who shot Neal that you would intercept any messages between myself and Diana and we could catch you here red handed; I mean why else would you be here unless you came to hide something," Peter said as he pointed his gun at Jack.

"I was wrong you're not as stupid as you look, you managed to figure everything out in the end… too bad you're going to end up dying down here alone," Jack said as he pulled the trigger. Peter cried out in pain and dropped his weapon as he covered the bullet wound in his right bicep. "Kick the gun over to me now or the next bullet is going in your knee," Jack warned as he watched the gun slide across the floor.

Crouching down Jack picked up Peter's gun and threw it to his left down the access hallway before walking up to Peter and pointed the barrel at him. "Kneel down, I have to make it look like a mob hit of course…"Jack remarked with a smirk, he was so fixed on watching Peter that he never noticed the gun slid to the edge of the shadows or that had been picked up. Peter looked at the gun before kneeling down and holding his arm in pain. "I'm not even going to give you a minute to pray," Jack said as he pressed the barrel against Peter's forehead.

Diana walked into the club with her gun drawn. As she made her way toward the stairs she took cover as three shots rang out and echoed in the empty club, fearing the worst possible scenario Diana ran down the stairs looking around every corner until she came across Neal standing in the doorway of the access hallway holding Peter's back up gun. Peter slowly got to his feet and walked over to Neal, using his good hand he took the gun from Neal and tossed it aside. Diana looked down and saw Jack's lifeless body. She looked up at the ex con and saw him shaking at the realization that he shot someone.

"Before you even ask it was self defense, Neal saved my life," Peter said softly as he gently reached up and touched Neal's cheek to wake him from his trance. Neal looked at Peter "I… I don't want to go to jail…I just didn't want him to shoot you again…" Neal cried as he put his arms around Peter and tightened his grip on him. Sighing softly Peter rubbed Neal's back to calm him down enough to speak. "You're not going to go to jail Neal you didn't do anything wrong, as long as you tell the truth when you're questioned then you'll be staying right where you belong… working with the FBI," he said softly.

* * *

Putting her gun away Diana looked at Peter "Peter I need to call this in, I'll call someone to take you two back to the hospital…Elizabeth would kill me if I let either one of you try to drive back in your conditions," Diana remarked as she watched Peter lead Neal past her and up the stairs to the empty club. Following behind she watched Neal systematically shut down into an almost catatonic state as Peter placed him in a chair and cupped his hand on Neal's cheeks and looked him in the eyes. "Diana can you get a rush on that bus; he's in shock and needs to get back to the hospital," Peter requested as he rubbed his thumb against Neal's cheek in hopes that it would snap him out of the shock he was in, Neal closed his eyes and lightly nuzzled Peter's hand.

Diana made a couple calls as she paced the empty dance floor of the club she called for a team to come in and take care of the body and begin taking statements. She gave Peter and Neal their space in hopes that Neal would wake up from his trance. When the ambulance arrived Peter helped Neal into the back and allowed him to cling to him as they were driven back to the hospital. Peter climbed out of the back of the ambulance with help as he began to turn around he barely had a chance to blink before Neal was attached to him while he was led into the emergency room where they came face to face with Elizabeth and Natasha with Nicolai between them being held by his ear.

Natasha let her eldest son go when she saw Neal "My poor baby what happened to you?" She asked as she grabbed Neal and pulled him away from Peter and hugged him close. Neal began to cry as he felt his mother rub his back. Nicolai rubbed his ear as he walked over to Peter "What the hell happened he looks worse than I've ever seen him," Nicolai remarked as he looked back at his little brother as he was led to a bench to sit down.

"The sting we set up didn't go as planned, Neal was supposed to stay here but it's good that he didn't or else I would be probably laying dead in a dirty basement… he shot Lawson and saved my life but his already fragile nature from the last few days topped with this put him in shock," Peter said as a doctor came over and began to lead him to a curtained off area to remove the bullet from his arm.

The moment Peter was out of sight it took Neal only a moment to realize the other man had left; right away Neal immediately sat up and began to look around like a scared rabbit as he looked for Peter. Nicolai walked over and put a comforting hand on Neal's shoulder. "Hey calm down Neal, Peter is right over there getting that bullet taken out of his arm," he explained softly as he tried to calm his brother down. When it was clear that Neal wouldn't calm down Nicolai followed the same path Peter took and stuck his head in the curtained area where Peter was. "I'm sorry to barge in here but would it be alright if Neal sat with you before he freaks out?" he asked as he looked from the doctor and Peter.

"Bring him in and tell Elizabeth to call Neal's doctor, here have her use my phone" Peter remarked as he used his good arm to hand Nicolai his phone, he grit his teeth as the doctor used the forceps to pull the bullet from his arm. "You're a lucky man agent Burke not only was this a terrible shot but the bullet barely did any damage it went in on the side of your arm and hit the bone." The doctor said as he pulled the bullet and dropped it into the pan the nurse was holding. "After I give you a couple stitches I want you to keep your arm immobile for a few days and I will be giving you a prescription for some pain pills," he said as he began to stitch up the bullet wound. Peter looked away and waited for Neal to walk in through the curtain.

Nicolai walked back and looked at Peter "The doc said he'd be here in an hour and Neal had to be given a mild tranquilizer to keep him from scaring the other people in the waiting room. My mom also thought he would be more comfortable up in his room so she had him brought back up and everyone is waiting for you up there and I get to play escort for that other doctor so later" Nicolai remarked before walking off.

Once Peter was done he put his arm in the sling he was offered and picked up his pain medication prescription. He then made his way up to Neal's private room where Elizabeth and Natasha were talking quietly as Neal rested. Upon entering the room Elizabeth rushed over and hugged her husband "Neal told us everything, how could you go to the club without back up?" Elizabeth asked as she stayed close to Peter. "I did have back up but Diana lost sight of Jack, Nicolai was supposed to keep Neal here to protect him but I'm actually glad that Neal showed up or you really would be having a funeral for me. I just hate that Neal had to be the one to shoot Jack. He didn't need to do such a hard thing," Peter remarked as he looked at the door to Neal's room.

* * *

When Doctor Parker arrived Peter greeted him by Neal's door "It's good to see you, Neal was given a mild tranquilizer not long ago so he might be a little out of it," Peter explained as he led the therapist into Neal's room. Peter placed his hand gently on Neal's shoulder to wake him up. "Neal…Doctor Parker is here to talk to you about what happened today," Peter said in a calm voice.

Neal groaned softly and moved his head from side to side "I don't want to Peter…he has bad taste in art," Neal mumbled as he pulled the blankets back up over his head. Peter grabbed the blankets and yanked them off the younger man. "You're not well Neal you need to talk about what happened," Peter said as he helped Neal sit up. "Peter… I don't want to talk about it…" Neal whined as he tried to wrestle the blankets from Peter. Dr. Parker opened his notebook and started to take notes of Peter and Neal's interaction with each other. After a minute Peter forced Neal to sit up and sat beside him to keep him from trying to run away.

"Now Neal I know it's hard to talk about this but just tell me why did you go back to that club today?" James asked as he readied his pen on his notepad. Neal closed his eyes for a moment and sighed "I had a terrible feeling that something was going to happen to him after Nicolai told me that he was going to the club to catch Jack in a sting operation. I went there and I picked up Peter's gun as it slid over to me. I grabbed the gun off the floor and moved to the door just before he pulled the trigger a second time. I told him to freeze and he wasn't going to stop so I pulled…the trigger and held it down until he hit the ground," Neal said softly. He paused as he let the other man finish writing his notes.

Peter reached over and took Neal's hand in his to show him he was doing the right thing by talking about his problems. Neal sighed softly as he nuzzled up against his partner. "Peter I'm surprised you're not trying to take advantage of me… how is it don't want to know where everything is hidden, I mean we're so close to it, how can you pass this information up?" Neal asked groggily as he put his head on Peter's shoulder and tried to snuggle up more intimately. Feeling uncomfortable with the intimate actions in public Peter pushed Neal away. "Not right now Neal…"Peter said lightly flushing at Neal's actions. Neal pouted and pulled away from the FBI agent and instantly shut down, when he was done with his notes Doctor Parker looked at the man across from him and motioned for him to get up so they could talk out in the hall.

As soon as Peter got up Neal snapped out of his trance and launched himself at the other man and grabbed him around the waist and practically knocked Peter to the ground. "No don't go…I don't want you to leave…."Neal cried as he kept a tight hold on Peter. The agent let out a low curse as he tried to pry his partner off his waist. "Neal I'm just going into the hall to talk to Dr. Parker you can see me through the window in the door. I'll come right back in… I promise" Peter said as he slowly pulled Neal's fingers back until the younger man let go. Whimpering lightly Neal backed up slowly and sat down on the edge of the bed and watched as Peter walked out of the room with his doctor the door shutting behind them.

"Agent Burke…Neal is suffering from the trauma of being shot and of shooting someone, not to mention he is also suffering from his earlier trials with his time in Italy and his kidnapping in New York. In my medical opinion he's less than a stone's throw from a total break down if he can't even let you go into the hall to talk for a couple minutes…I hate to say it but I can't sign off on the paperwork to let him work again until he's had time to clear his mind," Dr. Parker said as he closed his note book and pulled his prescription pad out of his pocket.

Filling out a prescription Dr. Parker ripped the sheet from his pad and handed it to Peter. "This is for Neal for any panic attacks that can arise from any flashbacks he might have. I'm sure you'll keep a close eye on him for any reactions. I want to see him soon to talk about how he's doing and you should try to get him away from the city for a while, it will help him recover" he added. Peter took the paper and put it in his pocket. "I'm glad that you could see him so soon, and I'll try to work something out," Peter said as he looked over his shoulder at Neal who was starting to look anxious. After shaking the doctor's hand Peter walked back into the room noticing that Neal was losing his anxiety and started to smile again.

* * *

Elizabeth poked her head out of the kitchen and watched Neal on the couch; she smiled it had only been three days since Neal was release from the hospital. He was currently looking over a file for Peter since he was still on medical leave. Neal was so engrossed with the fraud case he was reading that when a car backfired on the street he jumped up and looked around for the source of the sound. Elizabeth walked out of the kitchen and put a gentle hand on Neal's shoulder, she could feel the young man shaking under her touch.

"Neal… it was just a car," she explained softly trying to reach the young man. Neal lowered his head into his hands as he began to breathe heavy and rock back and forth as he started to flash back to his own shooting and how it blended into when he shot Jack to save Peter's life. But before she could stand up to get the medication the front door opened as Peter came home for lunch and before Peter could open his mouth to say he was home Elizabeth looked up from the couch. "Peter…he's having another attack," she said as she rubbed Neal's back.

Peter dropped his coat on the floor and moved around the coffee table to the other side of the couch and put his arms around Neal and held him close in his arms. Elizabeth got up from the couch and ran to the bathroom to get Neal's prescription sedatives. Grabbing a cup of water and the pills Elizabeth ran back downstairs and watched as her husband slowly calmed the other man down enough for him to take his pills. Neal took the two small pills and put them in his mouth before swallowing them with the water.

Handing the cup back to Elizabeth, Neal felt the drugs start to take over his mind became more relaxed as his shaking slowed down while he closed his eyes lightly "Peter… will you stay till I fall asleep?" he asked softly as he felt himself begin to drift away. Peter nodded and helped Neal lay out on the couch. He grabbed the blanket off the back and tucked Neal in and watched as he fell asleep.

Once he was sure Neal was asleep Peter rose from the couch and sat at the table across from his wife "He's getting worse, last night he had nightmares and now today he's having panic attacks," Peter said as he kept his voice down so he wouldn't wake Neal. Elizabeth placed the sandwich down in front of Peter. "You need to get him away from the city like his doctor said Peter. I know it will be hard to do but you have to get him somewhere to relax," she said softly as she looked at the younger man lying on the couch.

"I've been working on the paperwork to get him the time off that he needs, and I promise you El I will get him the time off that he deserves no matter what I have to do to get it," Peter promised as he began to eat. Elizabeth looked over at Neal "I hope you can get him something Peter he can't live like this in constant fear and sleep deprived. I can't watch him like this he isn't the same Neal we both know and love," Elizabeth said as she sipped her tea. Peter nodded his head and they ate in silence. After lunch Peter walked over to the couch and ruffled Neal's hair a bit as the younger man slept. "Call me if he gets any nightmares or panics again," Peter said before heading back to work. Elizabeth walked to the couch and played with Neal's hair a bit "Don't worry Neal we'll get you back to your old self soon I promise," she whispered before going to her laptop and resuming her work.

**(( Thanks again for reading and be on the lookout for the final story of the Worth The Risk Series ( to be named in an additional Author's note) , with more twists and turns and more Caffrey family interaction and Peter going undercover)) **

~~Loves and Hugs ~

Bun Bun Babe


	8. Author's Note

**Hey everyone sorry for the long wait for the next story in the worth the risk series but school does come first and I was having a majorly hard time coming up with a title for the story but here it is**

**the finale story in the worth the risk series is going to be called Rebirth, now all I have to do is figure out a chapter title for chapter 1 and you guys will get your first taste of the new story and I hope you all enjoy it.**

**Loves and Hugs Bun Bun Babe  
**


	9. Author's Note 2

**Hey Hey I wanted everyone to know that the sequel to Dragon's Den has been posted it is called **

**Rebirth and guess what I am incorperating parts of season 2 in it meaning **

**some charaters from season two will be showing up **

**I hope you all check out **

**and review the most recent **

**story in the worth **

**the risk **

**series**

**Loves and Hugs Bun Bun Babe **


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